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Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Louis Vago Scholarship Fund
This fund was created by Louis N. Vago (1925-2015) to provide scholarships to students in the Fox River Valley Area.
These scholarships are reserved for graduates of Aurora Central Catholic, Aurora Christian, East Aurora, Marmion, Metea Valley, Rosary, Waubonsie Valley or West Aurora High School.
Students must attend Aurora University, DePaul University or Hillsdale College.
Mr. Vago received his law degree from DePaul University.
He was a certified public accountant and an agent for the Internal Revenue Service.
He then founded and was president of General Aluminum Corporation from 1960-1986.
Louis Vago was a director of the Community Foundation for twenty-two years.
He also maintained memberships in numerous professional and civic organizations including the Illinois Bar Association, Kane County Bar Association, Elks Lodge and the Knights of Columbus.
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Robert C. & Maureen A. Granger Scholarship Endowment Fund
The Robert C. and Maureen A. Granger Scholarship Endowment Fund was created to assist graduates of East Aurora High School or West Aurora High School who are furthering their studies in a four-year college or university, seeking a degree in chemistry or chemical engineering.
This scholarship fund was established by Maureen Granger to help aspiring chemists earn a degree in the profession that her husband loved.
Robert (Bob) Granger was a graduate of East Aurora High School where he developed a lifelong interest in chemistry. He graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in chemistry.
He worked for the Burlington Railroad as a chemist/chief chemist for fourteen years. He then took a position with Sears Roebuck in Chicago as a chemist/product engineer until he passed away in 1990 at the age of sixty-one.
He and his wife Maureen were married for forty-one years before his passing. They raised their four children in Aurora.
The intent of this scholarship fund is to assist East Aurora and West Aurora High School graduates pursue a professional career in the field of chemistry.
About Us
Our Mission
We create lasting impact through asset development, nonprofit capacity building, and community leadership.
Our Vision
To enrich the lives of Wabash County residents by fostering opportunity, inspiring generosity, and building a thriving connected community.
Our Scholarships
For High School Seniors & Non Traditional Students who are beginning college more than one year after high school.
The Community Foundation of Wabash County offers a wide variety of post-secondary education scholarships to traditional, non-traditional, and graduate students. With nearly 70 different scholarship endowments created through the generosity of our donors, many students are eligible to apply.
Roy B. Craver Scholarship Endowment
Roy B. Craver was a veteran of World War I. He established a scholarship for residents of Wabash County and graduates of a Wabash County high school who like himself are willing to serve in the armed forces even if they do not intend to enlist.
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Philip B. Elfstrom & Peg Bond Scholarship Endowment Fund
Philip Elfstrom established this fund to provide scholarships to students who are residents of Batavia, Illinois.
Mr. Elfstrom, a Batavia businessman, was named Batavia Citizen of the Year in 1982.
He served as chairman of the Kane County Board from 1971 until 1982, after which he served as president of the Forest Preserve Commission until 1990.
Mr. Elfstrom was instrumental in acquiring many miles of Fox River shoreline for public use and in building the Kane County Trail System. He also brought Minor League Baseball to the Chicago Area.
Peg Bond (1914-1995) was an associate professor of arts. She was named Batavia Citizen of the Year in 1971.
Her civic involvement included the Batavia School Board, Batavia Planning Commission, Kane County Zoning Board and the Illinois Arts Council.
Her primary passion was teaching, through which she shared her talents and zest for learning with generations of students from Batavia Schools and Northern Illinois University.
The Peg Bond Center in Batavia was named in her honor.
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Albert M. Zari Scholarship Fund
The Albert M. Zari Scholarship Fund was established by the Albert M. Zari Foundation to provide scholarships to students who are pursuing an undergraduate degree from a college or university in accounting, aeronautics/aerospace science, agriculture, business, communications, computer science, electronics, engineering, finance, information systems, medicine, or pharmacy.
Students continuing their studies in trade schools are also eligible for these scholarships.
Eligibility is reserved for students graduating from public high schools located within the following Illinois School Districts: Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles, Oswego, Sycamore, DeKalb, Kaneland, Yorkville or Plano.
Albert M. Zari directed that these scholarships be created from his estate to reflect his belief in the power of education.
With an eighth grade education, and after completing an electricians’ apprenticeship program, Mr. Zari became a successful businessman.
He was the founder of A.M. Zari Construction Company and was very proud of the work that his company did on the runways at O’Hare Airport.
Mr. Zari spent his free time as a woodworker at his home in St. Charles, Illinois producing exquisite works of art.
A native of Chicago, he was the son of Peter and Delfina Zari and husband to Carole.
Mr. Zari served his country in the Navy in World War II. He passed away on February 2, 2014 at the age of 94.
The Mentoring/Scholarship Program provides educational support, college access assistance, and therapeutic support to assist youth in gaining the skills and confidence to reach their full academic and developmental potential. This is accomplished through a meaningful and supportive mentoring relationship, which is the main delivery system for higher education readiness and access. Students are also invited to attend college road trips, adventure therapy trips, and volunteer/service opportunities. This combination of these efforts facilitates positive youth development and academic achievement.
Each youth is matched with a one-on-one college educated mentor, who has been vetted and trained by Provider staff. Mentors meet weekly with youth to ensure educational success through individualized sessions to meet program benchmarks.
Together, mentors and youth complete a College Readiness Inventory which is used to assess whether the youth has mastered tasks related to post-secondary preparedness as well as skills necessary for successful adulthood. Using the results of the Inventory, youth and mentors evaluate remaining needs and set goals to work toward together.
The mentor works as both an advocate and coach for the student, identifying and gathering resources and then empowering the youth to make informed decisions about their education. Mentors connect their youth to supports like scholarships, tutors, and financial aid offices, and coach the student through new experiences like job interviews, understanding financial aid award letters, and communicating with officials in their desired academic institutions. Students are thus provided much needed assistance and opportunities to practice self-advocacy skills in their journey to independence.
Each time a student meets with their mentor, they earn $100 in scholarship money, which they can access when they are enrolled in a post-secondary program for tuition, room and board, fees, transportation, personal needs, etc. Upon receiving financial aid award letters, youth share all award letters with their mentor to compare offers and assess whether they will be in need of additional funding to attend the school. When necessary, mentors help students communicate with financial aid offices and caseworkers to obtain additional paperwork, including tax documents and court order documents as proof of independent status.
In addition to College Access Mentoring, there is a second program component, Travel and Service-Learning Opportunities. Youth are also invited but not required to attend college road trips and other travel and to participate in service opportunities.
Referrals
DCFS/CWCA workers may refer any youth interested in pursuing higher education after high school. Foster Progress Program Staff will follow up with each referral and invite the youth to submit their own application. Youth may also submit applications without being referred by workers. Program staff will then interview the young person. Youth must exhibit a commitment to continue their education and a desire for the support of a weekly mentor to work on that goal. If no mentor is immediately available, youth will be invited to participate in group activities and program staff will support their educational goals until a mentor can be recruited, vetted, and trained. All eligible participants are accepted until all openings are filled.
The Department will keep the Provider informed of policy and procedures that affect youth ages 14-21, especially as they relate to education. The Department will inform all 14 and 15 year olds in substitute care of the programming annually through the Foster Parent Newsletter, DCFS DNet, and Regional announcements and will include the Provider on the Spider website and the Education and Transition Services webpage. DCFS/POS workers coordinate and communicate with program staff and mentors regarding placement and any details that impact client’s capacity to transition successfully into adulthood, especially details such as IEPs and 504 plans in school, mental health concerns. DCFS/POS staff will inform Foster Progress program staff when there is a change in placement, new contact information for a client, or a new worker assigned to the client.
Initial contact is made with youth upon receipt of their program application via a formal interview by Program Staff. Subsequent contact includes the Match Meeting and weekly one-on-one meetings with the youth and their mentor.
Ongoing contact is maintained through quarterly individual communication and follow up with Program Staff, and periodic communication of scholarship and employment opportunities, as well as group activities. Program-wide activities include College Road Trips, Student Leadership and Service Committee, annual FAFSA Workshop, College Decision Day, and our end of the year Graduation and Scholarship Dinner.
Further contact includes youth-initiated requests for support between mentoring sessions and quarterly outreach from Program Staff, which youth seek out as-needed.
Target Population
Client: Youth in substitute care, aged 16-21, who intend to pursue higher education after high school. There are no minimum grades or test scores, all that is required is a commitment to the goal of furthering their education and the desire for the support of a mentor.
Inclusions: The agency will accept referrals for youth for whom the Department has legal responsibility are between 16 through 20 years of age, who exhibit, through the application and interview process, the desire to continue their education after high school. The agency will attempt to contact any referred client who is deemed appropriate by their DCFS or agency caseworker, POS worker or caregiver and to invite them to apply.
DeKalb County Farm Bureau Foundation
Mission – The Foundation’s mission is to broaden awareness and understanding of agriculture through outreach and education.
Scholarships
The DeKalb County Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture is proud to offer numerous scholarships for high school seniors and college students. Preference will be given to applicants of Farm Bureau members or their children with certain eligibility requirements.
College Students Scholarships
The DeKalb County Farm Bureau Foundation endeavors to recognize students for their academic, school and community performance while in college. The recognition is in the form of a scholarship to the student’s school of choice. The scholarship award will be sent directly to the recipient’s school to be applied toward college costs.
Bob & Norma Wildenradt Ag Scholarship
Bob and Norma Wildenradt established this scholarship to benefit students majoring in an ag-related field of study in pursuit of a future career in agriculture. One $2,000 scholarship will be awarded to a student in their sophomore, junior, or senior year of college within the state of Illinois.
Mission & Vision
Rochester Area Community Foundation, in partnership with generous philanthropists and community partners, works to improve the quality of life for people who live and work in the eight-county region through its leadership and strategic grantmaking.
Our Mission:
We are cultivating a thriving Greater Rochester region — powered by philanthropy, grounded in community, and sustained across generations.
Our Vision:
We envision a Greater Rochester region transformed by enduring philanthropy, where every person, neighborhood, and future generation can thrive.
Natale Scholarship
Purpose of Scholarship
To provide scholarships to deserving residents of the town of Irondequoit.
Number and Size of Awards
One award of up to $30,000; paid as $7,500 per year for four consecutive years of undergraduate study. Award paid in the Fall and divided equally between the Fall and Spring semesters.
Donor Information
This scholarship was created to provide scholarships to deserving residents of the town of Irondequoit to attend the University of Illinois, Rochester Institute of Technology or Niagara University.
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Richard E. & Ann R. McWethy Scholarship Endowment Fund
This fund provides scholarships for residents of Kendall County, Illinois.
Ann Riford McWethy (1919-2019) was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1919 to Lulu and Otis Riford. She grew up in Canton, south of Boston.
After four years at prep school at Northfield, Massachusetts, Mrs. McWethy graduated from Green Mountain College in Vermont.
As a youth, she played tennis and taught swimming and canoeing as a counselor at Camp Waukeela in New Hampshire. She enjoyed other sports as well, including downhill and cross-country skiing.
After college she worked as a legal secretary in Boston.
She met her future husband Richard E. McWethy at a naval officers’ dance at Harvard University. He knew that “she was the one” right away. They were married a few months later in January of 1944 in her home.
Richard (Dick) McWethy (1921-2014) was born and raised in Aurora, Illinois. He spent his summers at the family cottage near South Haven on Lake Michigan enjoying swimming, sailing and tennis.
He graduated first in his class from West Aurora High School in 1939. He then enrolled at Caltech in Pasadena, majoring in engineering.
Mr. McWethy was on active duty with the Naval Reserve when school was not in session. He spent one summer aboard the 110-foot schooner “Volador,” sailing patrol one hundred to one hundred-fifty miles offshore watching for Japanese submarines.
After graduation, he was called for active duty in the Navy and was sent to Harvard University for communications training.
Eventually, he served on Attu, at the end of the Aleutian Island chain in Alaska. There he worked in communications with code machines while they launched bombing runs over northern Japan. He noted that the weather reports on Attu ended every day with “wind gusts to 60k.”
The couple had three children – Merrill, Peggy and Lee.
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Richard J. & Marilyn J. Michelini Scholarship Endowment Fund
The Richard J. and Marilyn J. Michelini Scholarship Endowment Fund was created to provide scholarships to students who reside within the incorporated area of the Village of Montgomery.
Richard Michelini (1931-2003) graduated from Colorado State University. He served in the United States Army and was regional sales manager for Ciba-Geigy for thirty-three years.
Marilyn Michelini served as the president of the Village of Montgomery. Previously, she served on the Kane County Board and the Village of Montgomery Board of Trustees.
Mrs. Michelini was a member of the DuKane Valley Council, Kendall County Mayors and Managers Association, Metro West Council of Governments, and Fox Valley United Way.
The Michelini’s have five children: Thomas ’72, Marie Lynn ’73, Mark ’77, Lisa ’80, Tina ’90.
Mrs. Michelini created this scholarship fund in 2005 as a celebration of the wonderful education the Michelini children received in Aurora. One of the proudest accomplishments of Richard and Marilyn was that they were fortunate enough to send five children to college.
The fund became an endowment in 2008.
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is a collection of individual funds and resources given by local citizens to enhance and support the quality of life in the Fox River Valley of Illinois.
We are a tax-exempt public charity that allows individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations to establish permanent endowments and temporary funds within the confines of one large foundation.
Foundation funds are used to provide grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to area students. The Foundation also hosts a Youth Engagement in Philanthropy (YEP) program, which helps high school students learn more about philanthropy and empowers them to make a difference in the community.
The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley serves the City of Aurora, Kane County, and Kendall County within the State of Illinois.
Scholarship Program
Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.
Warren J. & Shirley J. Eggers Scholarship Fund
Warren J. Eggers, an active civic leader in the Aurora area, passed away on February 15, 2010.
To honor his life, Mr. Egger’s family and friends created a scholarship fund to provide assistance to local students with great financial need who wish to further their education upon graduation from high school.
Warren Eggers (1935-2010) was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in River Forest, Illinois.
He was a graduate of Oak Park–River Forest High School and Elmhurst College.
Upon graduation from college, he was employed as a research chemist at the Sherwin-Williams Company.
In 1966, the family moved to the Aurora area where Mr. Eggers continued his work in the paint and adhesive industry.
He and a group of colleagues purchased the former River Valley Coatings. He retired from the company in 1996.
He served as a director of the Waubonsee Community College Foundation, chairman of the Valley Industrial Association, member of the Kane County Bar Foundation and member of the Community Foundation Scholarship Committee.
Shirley Eggers was born and raised in Freeport, Illinois.
She received her R.N. from Rush-Presbyterian-Saint Lukes Hospital in Chicago and her Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing from Northern Illinois University.
Mrs. Eggers retired after fifteen years as a school nurse at East Aurora High School.
Mr. and Mrs. Eggers were active members of Bethany Lutheran Church in Batavia.
Looking for higher education grants in Illinois?
Read more about each grant below or start your 14-day free trial to see all higher education grants in Illinois recommended for your specific programs.
What's the typical amount funded for Illinois?
Grants are most commonly $104,222.
What's the total number of grants in Higher Education Grants in Illinois year over year?
In 2024, funders in Illinois awarded a total of 104,158 grants.
Among all the Higher Education Grants in Illinois given out in Illinois, the most popular focus areas that receive funding are Education, Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Foundations, and Human Services.
1. Education
2. Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Foundations
3. Human Services
How is funding for Higher Education Grants in Illinois changing over time?
Funding has increased by 16.08%.
How does grant funding vary by county?
Cook County, Lake County, and Macon County receive the most funding.
| County | Total Grant Funding in 2024 |
|---|---|
| Cook County | $6,893,460,213 |
| Lake County | $720,580,526 |
| Macon County | $544,478,272 |
| Champaign County | $541,704,331 |
| Dupage County | $496,099,366 |