"We are excited to announce that the scholarship amounts have been increased," said Chuck Tuman, President of Highline Schools Foundation for Excellence. "We now offer $36,000 in scholarships, $6,000 more than last year and a 20 increase. "

The STIA Scholarship is awarded to three Highline Public Schools students who will be pursuing a college education in 2011. Two $14,000 scholarships will be awarded toward university/college education and one $8,000 scholarship will be awarded toward a vocational or community college education. All scholarships are distributed over a 2-year period.

Applications must be postmarked by Friday, March 25

STIA scholarships have been helping students fulfill their dreams since 2002. In the last nine years, 27 scholarships worth $231,000 have been awarded.

Former Global Connections High School student Mahlet Zeru, who received a STIA scholarship in 2006, said, "The STIA Scholarship helped my dreams of attending college possible."

Former Mount Rainier High School student Julie Pinson, a 2007 scholarship recipient, thanked the foundation for helping make her dream of attending college come true: "If it wasn't for all of you, it would have been extremely hard for me to fulfill my dream."

The foundation was established in 1999 with the purpose of providing community resources to help Highline Public Schools succeed. The foundation believes that by helping to enrich the classroom and school experience, students can reach a higher level of learning, and the entire community will benefit.

The foundation is governed by a dedicated group of volunteer Trustees and is the only 501(c)(3) organization supporting all Highline Public Schools. The foundation strives to be the single point of contact for community members, local and national business, service organizations and other foundations to connect their philanthropic efforts with a single school or the entire district.

Application forms are available online at www.highlineschoolsfoundation.org

The STIA scholarship is a needs-based scholarship.

HMS Host & Employees and Contractors of the Port of Seattle fund all STIA Scholarships.

Contact the Highline Schools Foundation for Excellence with any questions at 206-248-5196 or info@highlineschoolsfoundation.org