OCA CURRENTLY ACCEPTING
APPLICATIONS FOR
2004 OCA-UPS GOLD MOUNTAIN SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
Date:
03/30/2004
Washington, DC - The
Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) is partnering with UPS to present the
2004 OCA-UPS Gold Mountain Scholarship Program. Twelve scholarships of $2,000
each will be awarded to Asian Pacific American (APA) students who are the first
in their family to attend college and will be entering their first year of
college this fall.
"OCA and UPS are dedicated to education in the APA community," commented OCA
National President Raymond Wong. "UPS recognizes the need to provide
opportunities to APA students who do not have access to the financial resources
necessary to pursue higher education."
Scholarships and financial aid are critical in helping students from lower
income families attain a college education. According to 1999 statistics from
the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 12.6 percent of the U.S. APA population of nearly
12 million lives at or under the poverty rate. This is of 12.6 percent,
compared to nine percent of non-Hispanic Whites. Although APAs are often victims
of the "model minority" myth, and thus lack access to additional financial
resources to pay for college, most APAs do not fit into the highly educated and
wealthy category dictated by this stereotype. The OCA-UPS Gold Mountain
Scholarship Program will provide opportunities to APA students who wish to
pursue higher education while facing financial difficulties.
Within the last eight years, OCA has awarded more than 1300 scholarships to
financially disadvantaged students through its various scholarship programs.
"Education has always been a high priority in the Asian Pacific American
community." noted Christine Chen, OCA Executive Director. "Although the average
level of education for APAs is high, the statistics are misleading. While there
are many members of our community who have advanced degrees, there also are
countless APAs who are unable to attend college due to financial difficulties.
Through our many scholarships - including the OCA-UPS Foundation Gold Mountain
Scholarship - OCA is committed to granting deserving APA students a chance they
otherwise would not get."
UPS is committed to
preparing the next generation of business leaders and thinkers by supporting
diverse education programs. As the cost to attend colleges and universities
continues to rise, UPS supports a wide range of scholarship programs to ensure
students have the opportunity to pursue higher education. Through partnerships
with organizations such as the United Negro College Fund and the Hispanic
Scholarship Fund and benefits such as tuition assistance for its employees, UPS
and The UPS Foundation are involved in strategic efforts to provide access to
funds for higher education. Visit community.ups.com for more information on the
UPS Foundation and UPS's community programs.
For more information on OCA's scholarship programs and an application, students
may go to OCA's website at www.ocanatl.org. The deadline for applying to the
2004 OCA-UPS Gold Mountain Scholarship Program is May 1, 2004.
Contact: Vana Tran, vtran@ocanatl.org
