scholarship opportunities
More than 800 students across Chicago answered the call.
The Chicago City Treasurer’s Office will carefully review each application to select this year’s Empowerment Scholarship recipients. Selected students will be contacted directly, with recipients recognized before the end of the year.
THANK YOU TO OUR 2026 EMPOWERMENT SCHOLARSHIP PARTNERS
As part of the Treasurer’s High School Scholarship Essay Contest, the Treasurer’s office annually awards non-renewable scholarships, sponsored by BMO Harris Bank, to support the cost of attending the first year of college to two high school students. This scholarship is open during Black History Month, Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Native American Heritage Month, recognizing seniors in high school who have displayed outstanding academic achievement or community involvement and who write a thoughtful and impactful essay on a topic related to the respective heritage month. This scholarship is open to all Chicago High Schools seniors and requires no minimum grade point average.
Below are the winners of previous scholarships:
2022 – 2023 Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month First Place: Jeremy Battung, Goode High School Second Place: Marish Manuel, Admundsen High School 2022 – 2023 Black History Month First Place: Tyler Smith – $1,500 Second Place: Iyana Gross – $1,000 2021 – 2022 Hispanic Heritage Month First Place: Jade Avalos, World Language Academy High School Second Place: Alicja Martinez, Carl Schurz High School 2021-2022 Black History Month First Place: Aniyah Chase-Mayfield, Walter Payton College Prep Second Place: Maurice Oldham, Amundsen High School2021 – 2022 Black History Month First Place: Jada E. Carey, Gary Comer College Prep Second Place: Ezekiel Bramble, Von Steuben High School
2020 – 2021 Hispanic Heritage Month First Place: Alissa Medina – $1,500 Second Place: Jacqueline Guzman – $1,000
2019 – 2020 Hispanic Heritage Month First Place: Abel Almanza – $1,500 Second Place: Yovani Villeda Alvarez – $1,000