Changes to the Scholarship Program for
FY 2008

SJI will be maintaining all five types of grant programs in FY 2008; Project Grants, Partner Grants, Technical Assistance Grants, Curriculum Adaptation & Training Grants, and Scholarships.  The new Guideline for FY 2008 will be published in the Federal Register within the next couple of weeks, and it will contain some changes to the Scholarship program.  Here are some of the changes for FY 2008:

1) The Board of Directors discussed the importance of Scholarships during the September 21, 2007, Board meeting.  Specifically, the Board highlighted the continued need and voted to continue the program in FY 2008, although at a reduced level due to other funding priorities.  Therefore, the amount available for scholarships has been reduced from $250,000 to $175,000 for FY 2008. 

2) Scholarship funding may not be used for attendance of annual conferences or meetings.  Funds may only be used for attendance at an educational program designed specifically for judges and court managers, and addressing issues essential to judicial and court administrative personnel. 

3) Scholarship applications should be submitted on a “first come/first considered” basis.  No longer will an applicant need to wait for the quarter preceding the education program to submit a scholarship application to SJI.  The applications will be reviewed on a quarterly basis, and we will distribute available funding as evenly as possible across the fiscal year.  However, applicants are strongly urged to apply as soon as a program has been identified, since applications may be submitted at any time.  Those received by the first day of the second month of a fiscal quarter will be reviewed, and awards will be made by the end of each fiscal quarter.  This means the next due date is November 1, 2007, and scholarship applications must be received by that date; it is no longer a mail due date.  The remaining due dates in FY 2008 are February 1, May 1, and August 1.  If you have any questions about this process, or the Scholarship program in general, please contact us.