Trustees Announce Community Scholarships Application Process Now Open to All Qualified City Residents, Due March 15

February 28, 2024

Scholarship application season is now underway. The City of Portsmouth Trustees of the Trust Funds, administrator of the funding for many scholarships, remind residents the application deadline is March 15, 2024. While many of the scholarships are awarded only to graduating Portsmouth High School seniors, some (including the five Portsmouth Community Scholarships) are open to any Portsmouth resident who is a graduating senior. Eligible Portsmouth students attending private schools such as Berwick Academy, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Philips Exeter Academy, and homeschool programs are invited to apply, as well as Portsmouth residents attending Portsmouth High School.

All applicants should review the application information on the Trustees’ webpage, including the link to the current Portsmouth High School Guidance Department Scholarship Booklet and follow the instructions for the online application process.

In December 2019, the Portsmouth City Council approved the recommendations of the Trustees of the Trust Funds to consolidate several underfunded accounts into five Portsmouth Community Scholarship Funds that combined accounts with fund balances too small to generate enough investment interest to make annual awards. The creation of the new scholarship funds made more income available to award the scholarships each year. The Portsmouth Community Scholarships include:

  • Study in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM);
  • Study in the Arts;
  • Study in Career Technology (Trades);
  • Study in Higher Education generally; and
  • In recognition of athletic accomplishment.

Those who would like to donate to any of the five Community Scholarship Funds may do so using the secure payment portal on the City website. Click on the “Make a Donation” button in the middle of the CityofPortsmouth.com homepage or go directly to https://portsnh.co/3I4UpUr to select a scholarship fund to support. Donations may be made on the site by electronic check (no fee) or by credit card (the 2.9% fee goes to the service provider and is not retained by the City). Check donations may also be mailed to Portsmouth Community Scholarships c/o Trustees of the Trust Funds, City Hall, One Junkins Avenue, Portsmouth, NH 03801. Donors receive a letter confirming tax deductibility for their donations, to the extent of the law.