It’s been 45 years in the making.

Since forming in 1976, the Fox Valley Technical College Foundation, Inc. is thrilled to announce it has crossed the $10 million mark in the amount of scholarships awarded to FVTC students. The exact milestone of $10,808,332 was reached at the end of the fiscal year on June 30.

That’s no small chunk of change.

“Demand is always there,” says Becky Boulanger, executive director of the FVTC Foundation. “We see the amount of applications and demand from students go up, and we do our best to respond to that increased demand. We have been able to accommodate about 50% of the requests that come in. That’s been about $800,000 a year for the past three years.”

The Foundation is able to offer scholarships through giving from individual donors as well as local, state and national businesses and organizations.

Each year the Foundation also hosts a golf outing which is its only fundraising event and a significant source of scholarship income. The 2021 outing in August raised nearly $110,000.

Stacy Morton is one student who can appreciate the Foundation’s efforts. After completing her degree in Criminal Justice, Stacy entered FVTC’s Law Enforcement Academy. While many law enforcement agencies can sponsor their recruits to go to the academy, Stacy is paying her own way.

“I’m so grateful for this scholarship,” Stacy says. “Every bit helps and the scholarship reduced what I had to pay for tuition by about 10%.”

Students are not the only ones who benefit from scholarships.

“As meaningful as it is to the students to receive a scholarship, it is also rewarding to those who donate or establish a scholarship,” Becky says. “Donors feel good knowing that their gift is making a lasting impact in someone’s life, and we know education is the gateway to brighter futures for many.”