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Sustainability Scholarship
Applications currently closed. Please check back.
As big believers in promoting sustainable products, services, and other initiatives that make the world a more eco-friendly place, we’re proud to announce our first semi-annual sustainability scholarship! The scholarship will be awarded each semester to a college student who is committed to challenging the status-quo of what “sustainability” means in the industry they’re studying to enter.
Our hope is that this scholarship will:
- Ease the burden of college debt for students who wish to give back to the environment
- Provoke thought on new ways businesses can help make the world a more sustainable, eco-friendly place.
- Help bring more awareness to the importance of sustainability.
- Encourage future generations to build on sustainability benchmarks that have already been set in their industry.
Why offer a sustainability scholarship?
At Sleeping Organic, we believe sustainability issues are an international affair. That’s why we commit to producing natural latex mattresses, natural latex bed toppers, and other organic bedding products that don’t contain harmful chemicals! It’s our belief that removing toxins that are bad for the health of our customers (and the planet) from our factories is one of the best ways that we as a company can do our part in improving the world we live in.
But since we’re only one company, we know we can’t change the world alone!
To help achieve better sustainability for the planet, we must also do our part in giving back to students who share the same values, and those who offer creative solutions to the world’s problems. Does this sound like you? If so, we’d love for you to enter!
Scholarship Eligibility Requirements
Because we believe sustainability should be a global initiative, we’ve tried to make our requirements for entry as broad as possible.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us directly!
All applicants must be:
- A United States Citizen
- Incoming or current college student entering their freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior year.
- Have a minimum cumulative GPA 2.5
- For incoming Freshman, a minimum high school GPA of 2.5 is also sufficient.
The Application
There isn’t one solution for improving sustainability on the planet, so there isn’t one right answer to the questions you’ll find below. This is also why the questions, in general, are somewhat broad. To apply, please submit a personal video or essay that answers the following questions:
- How will online buying habits change as information about product sustainability becomes more accessible?
- What’s one type of product that needs a more sustainable solution?
Please include the following information with your application:
For the questions, short sentences are fine. You don’t need to make this a separate essay, we’d just like to know a little more about you!
- First and last name
- School
- Major
- Where did you grow up?
- What does your ‘perfect career’ look like?
- If you could put one billboard anywhere in the world, where would it be and what would it say?
Submission Process & Tips
Please submit your video or essay along with your ‘additional information’ via email to [email protected].
When we receive your submission, we’ll respond to let you know we got it!
And if you don’t hear from us within 7 days, please feel free to reach our directly.
- If submitting a Video, please upload your video to Youtube and include the link in your email.
- If submitting an essay, please attach your a text or word document to the email.
Want to win? Here are a few tips:
- Be thoughtful. Answer questions in detail.
- Be open, be creative! We’re predicting the future here, so there’s no right answer.
- Have an opinion. We want to know what YOU think!
- Cite relevant sources and/or data to back up your claims (scholarly articles, case studies, industry data, expert opinions, etc)
- No limits. Your ideas and opinions don’t have to be a certain amount of words to be valuable. Use as little or as many words (or seconds of video) as you need to clearly answer the questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the scholarship application deadline?
The scholarship deadline is October 1, 2017 for Spring Semester 2017’s scholarship and April 1st, 2018 for Fall Semester 2018’s scholarship.
If I win, when and how will the scholarship funds be available to me?
The funds will be made available by December 1st 2017. Depending on the rules and regulations of the winner’s college or university, your prize will either be sent to you directly or sent to your Financial Aid or Bursar’s office for pickup on campus.
How is a winner determined?
A winning submission will be the applicant who meets or exceeds the eligibility requirements and submits an essay or a video that answers the required questions using the most creative and innovative presentation style. Bonus points will be given to applicants who present solutions to the application questions that offer refreshing alternatives to commonly-held societal beliefs.
If I win, when and how will the scholarship funds be available to me?
The funds will be made available by December 1st 2017. Depending on the rules and regulations of the winner’s college or university, your prize will either be sent to you directly or sent to your Financial Aid or Bursar’s office for pickup on campus.
When will the winner be selected? How will they be notified?
The winner for Spring Semester 2018’s award will be selected by November 1st, 2017 and notified within a week of this date (November 7th).
If you’re the winner, you’ll be notified via email.
In the event the winner does not respond within 5 days of the initial contact attempt, we will attempt to reach you over the phone. And if we are unable to contact you within three days of our phone call, a new winner will be chosen.
How will you verify the eligibility requirements?
After the winner is chosen and before the scholarship award is transferred, the winner will be required to verify that their enrollment status at a college or university. Proof that their GPA is above the minimum 2.5 will also be required at this time.
Your sustainability scholarship from Sleeping Organic must be used towards either tuition at an accredited college or university, or put towards other educational expenses. Note: If the winner’s college or university has specific requirements for the use of scholarship’s and other acedemic awards, you must follow those requirements.
