Give — Civic learning
We provide travel scholarships to help middle school students across the U.S. explore Washington, D.C. and the historic East Coast. By helping cover travel costs, the Founders Scholarship gives students the opportunity to see history come alive, deepen their understanding of civics, and build a lifelong commitment to service.
How It Works
To apply, write an essay about someone in your life or community who models one of these qualities:
Someone who gives their time and energy to help others and strengthen their community.
Someone who does the right thing — even when it’s hard, and even when no one is watching.
Someone who guides and inspires others toward a shared goal with courage and care.
Every Founders Scholar commits to sharing a quick reflection after their trip. This can be as simple as a favorite photo accompanied by a short note or thank-you message about what you learned and what the experience meant to you.
AI tools can help you brainstorm or generate ideas, but your essay must reflect your own original thinking and writing. Please don’t use AI to write your essay for you — essays generated or heavily written by AI will not be considered for an award.
Applications are reviewed based on when your trip takes place. Find the window that matches your trip dates and apply before the deadline.
January – March travel
April – June travel
Scholarships in Action
Our scholars take learning far beyond the classroom—standing where history happened, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to the gates of the White House. See the impact through the eyes of our students.
Scholarship Stories
Read how Founders Scholarship recipients experience life-changing travel to Washington, D.C. and the historic East Coast.
Jace had never been more than 500 miles from home. A scholarship took him to Washington, D.C., where the Vietnam Memorial, Ben’s Chili Bowl and the MLK Jr. Memorial reshaped how he thinks about war, community and courage.
Read the story
A scholarship took Everett to Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia to see the history he’d only read about. The Holocaust Museum left the deepest mark.
Read the story