The “Next Step to Success” scholarship will aid five Sandy Springs students in their pursuit of a college degree this year.
The future of Sandy Springs is in our youth. As the next generation of leaders and decision makers in our community, our students must receive the support and encouragement they need to achieve academic success.
That’s why the Couchman Noble Foundation is proud to announce the “Next Step to Success” college scholarship program. This program, developed in collaboration with Los Niños Primero, will award five scholarships for the upcoming academic year to prior recipients of the Martha Barrios Mead Scholarship, sponsored by Los Niños Primero. Mead Scholarships assist students during their freshman year in college, and “Next Step to Success” scholarships provide financial support for these same students after their freshman year.
- Read More: “Next Step to Success” Scholarship Fund
“These awards complement other giving that our foundation has been doing to support both elementary and secondary education in our city,” said David Couchman, co-founder and president of the Couchman Noble Foundation. “It felt like the right thing to do and allows Los Niños Primero to give more scholarships to the first-year college students.” The Couchman Noble Foundation said they hope to expand the Next Step program next year by partnering with other city nonprofits who offer scholarships.
Established in 2019, the Martha Barrios Mead Scholarship was named in honor of Martha Barrios Mead, the Los Niños Primero program’s co-founder. Along with the program’s first executive director Maritza Morelli, Mead founded Los Niños Primero in 2001 as an educational summer camp for underserved Latino youth in the Sandy Springs area.
- More Information: Martha Barrios Mead Scholarship Program
Combined, the “Next Step to Success” scholarship program and the Martha Barrios Mead scholarship program will award more than $50,000 in scholarships this year.
“We hope that the ‘Next Step to Success’ scholarship will assist students in achieving their goals by graduating from college without having to take on large amounts of student loan debt,” said Melanie Couchman, co-founder of the Couchman Noble Foundation. “Our diverse community is full of brilliant young minds who will become the future leaders of our community and beyond, and we’re proud to be able to support them.”
This year’s scholarship recipients received their award letters in June and will be recognized at the annual gala at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center on October 1, 2022.
