Charter Communications said Thursday that it will effectively double its investment in Spectrum Scholars, its college scholarship program for underrepresented students with financial need, beginning with the 2022-23 academic year. The company, which operates in 41 states across the country, said it will award scholarships to a new class of 20 college juniors annually instead of biennially, for a $400,000 total yearly commitment.
“We launched Spectrum Scholars two years ago to support students representing the diverse communities we serve and to better develop our future workforce through career mentorship and internship opportunities,” said Charter EVP and chief human resources officer Paul Marchand said in a press release. “With our first class of Scholars set to graduate this spring, now is the perfect time to double down on our commitment and expand Spectrum Scholars to provide financial assistance to twice as many college students. We look forward to welcoming the next class of Spectrum Scholars and to introducing them to the many career paths available with Charter.”
Charter is partnering with Scholarship America, the largest scholarship and education support organization in the country, to administer the program and assist with the selection of Spectrum Scholars recipients. To be considered, applicants must be rising college juniors with financial need and identify as Asian/Pacific Islander, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino and/or Native American.
The 20 students selected annually will each be awarded $20,000 total, half during their junior year and the other half in their senior year, and participate in a structured, two-year program that will focus on professional development. Students will be assigned a Charter mentor and be given the opportunity to pursue an internship at one of Charter’s corporate offices in Stamford, Connecticut; Charlotte, North Carolina; St. Louis; and Denver, including roles with Spectrum Enterprise and Spectrum Networks.
Launched in May 2020, the inaugural class of Spectrum Scholars represented 18 schools, including Brandeis University, Georgetown University, Howard University, North Carolina State University, Ohio State University, University of Southern California and Texas A&M. Fields of study included Accounting, Business Administration, Computer Science, Cybersecurity and Networks, Economics, Marketing, Mechanical Engineering and Science and Technology. Several students participated in internships, including roles with Charter’s Community Impact team, Spectrum Networks and Spectrum Enterprise. Information about Charter’s inaugural Scholars class is available here.
The deadline for applications is February 28. Winners will be announced in May and scholarships will be awarded in August.
