CHAMPAIGN, IL — Each year, U of I Community Credit Union awards seven college-bound high school seniors a scholarship up to $1,000 based on the Illinois college of their choice. The Orange & Blue Scholarship Program is designed to benefit students who are U of I Community Credit Union members (and/or legal guardians are members) and will be attending the University of Illinois, Parkland College, and other Illinois colleges and universities.
Scholarship applications are reviewed by a team of volunteers at the U of I Community Credit Union and are given a score based on the information and documents submitted. Applicants are asked various questions including their favorite activities throughout high school, and any honors or awards they have received. They are also required to submit two letters of recommendation and an essay relating to the benefits of credit unions.
“Our 2024 Scholarship recipients are outstanding,” said Lisa Paul, UICCU Senior Vice President of Member Experience. “These students went above and beyond in academics, extracurriculars, and community involvement. We can’t wait to see what they do next!”
The 2024 Orange & Blue Scholarship winners have been announced and were recognized on UICCU’s social media channels in May. UICCU is proud to announce the 2024 Orange & Blue Scholarship recipients:
Black Hawk College East
- Olivia Shike – Tolono Unity High School
Monmouth College
- Caleb Ochs – St. Joseph Ogden High School
Parkland Community College
- Kya Jolley – St. Joseph Ogden High School
University of Illinois Chicago
- Lorelei Leimberer – Riverside Brookfield High School
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Leah Boratto – Normal Community West High School
- Ian Peters – Urbana High School
- Besserat Stifanos – Urbana High School
Details about the scholarship are available online at uoficreditunion.org/resources/orange-blue-scholarship/.
U of I Community Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned cooperative that provides a wide range of financial products and services to anyone who lives or works in Champaign, Coles, Dewitt, Douglas, Edgar, Ford, Iroquois, McLean, Moultrie, Piatt, Sangamon, and Vermilion, IL counties as well as University of Illinois employees, Carle employees and other select employee groups. UICCU was named one of the 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 Best Places to Work in Illinois, 2019, 2020, and 2023 Best Credit Unions to Work For and 2019 Tops in the 217 Winner for Banks/Credit Unions. To learn more, visit uoficreditunion.org.