Small Biz Cares Scholarship Recipients

Volunteering. Fundraising. Storytelling. SCHOLARSHIP!

Each of the three recipients of this year’s Small Biz Care Scholarship is a student at Columbus State with a financial need and an interest in some day starting their very own small business.

We had the pleasure of meeting with two of the recipients: Antonio & Jessie. Here they are with Founder & CEO Nevin Bansal (right) and Founding Board Member Bill Nolan (Left). Shoffon (not pictured) was the third recipient!

Scholarship Recipient Thank You Letters

We received some truly thoughtful thank you letters and just had to share them with our members. (Read the letters below.) We enjoyed learning a little about each of these student’s stories and were excited to see these funds find their way into the right hands. We wish Antonio, Jessie, and Shoffon the best of luck as they finish their studies and pave their way into a successful future!

Dear Donor,

Thank you for choosing me for the Small Biz Cares Scholarship. It couldn’t have come at a better time.
I have recently lost my job of 14 years and was worrying about tuition towards completing my degree. This truly a blessing for me and looking forward to becoming a small business owner in the future.

Yours Truly,
Antonio Nichols

CSCC student

Dear Scholarship Donors,

Thank you for choosing me as the recipient of the Small Biz Cares Scholarship! Receiving this scholarship will reduce my residual tuition burden by lessening the amount of Federal student loans I have to borrow. It also means I can add an additional class in Autumn Semester, now that I have more funding for tuition, books, and supplies.

I’m attending Columbus State to learn the fundamentals of starting and maintaining a successful business. Prior to this, I did not have a clear vision of what would be my next step in life. Through the mentorship and guidance of my professors, I have been able to conceptualize and realize a profitable combination of my Fine Art background, my Aesthetics and Cosmetology experience, and my paramedical re-pigmentation training. Since my first business class in January of 2018, I have learned essential and applicable knowledge that I was missing in order to start up; just having a working vocabulary of business terms has helped me expand and describe my business plans far beyond what I had initially envisioned. My greatest achievement to date has been completing my 35-page business plan, which took six months of research and editing to finish. So far, I have beta tested my concept in two central Ohio locations with different target customer segments, and I plan to launch an independent studio after graduating in 2020. During my time at Columbus State, I have also achieved status as a 5-star level member of the international Honor Society, Phi Theta Kappa.

This opportunity helps me to achieve my dream of business ownership. When I was notified that I was the recipient of this scholarship, it renewed my excitement for the Autumn Semester, and gave me more incentive to work toward completing my educational goals. Thank you again for your kindness and generosity.

Sincerely,
Jessie M. Ellwood

To the members of the Small Biz Cares scholarship committee,

I would like to thank you. This money will go far in helping me complete my studies at Columbus State Community College.
This money will help maintain the security necessary and allow me to focus not only on my immediate studies, but it will give me the confidence and peace of mind required to plan and achieve goals toward a prosperous future.
Again, I thank you from my heart.

Sincerely yours,
Shoffon R. Scipio

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