1. Have attended a Marion County high school a minimum of two years including the applicant’s senior year.

2. Be registered to attend an accredited college or university, which normally maintains a regular faculty and curriculum and normally has a regularly enrolled body of pupils or students in attendance at the place where its educational activities are regularly carried on for a course of study that will prepare them for a career.

3. Have scored in the upper 50^th percentile of the ACT, SAT, or other national standardized test commonly used to select students for the applicant’s planned course of study.

4. Have timely prepared and filed the application and accompanying documents designated by the Marion Community Foundation for this scholarship.

5. Be available for an interview as determined by the Marion Community Foundation.

6. Submit a letter of recommendation from a current or former Marion County teacher and a letter of recommendation from a member of the Marion County community who is not a relative of the applicant.

Criteria for Selection among applicants who meet the minimum requirements:

1. Academic Achievement. His or her class ranking, his or her grade point average, and the relative difficulty of his or her courses will show the applicant’s prior academic achievement.

2. Academic Potential. The applicant’s academic potential will be demonstrated by his or her score on the ACT, SAT, or other national standardized test commonly used to select students for the applicant’s planned course of study.

3. Financial Need. The financial need of the applicant will be measured by the cost of the education as compared to the applicant’s financial resources.

4. Community Service and School Citizenship. The applicant’s commitment to the Marion County community and to the applicant’s school will be demonstrated by the applicant’s service, charitable works, and citizenship.

5. Special Skills. A brief essay, a possible interview, and the applicant’s academic achievements will demonstrate the applicant’s aptitude for and commitment to excellent communications.

6. No Prejudice. In making the selection, Marion Community Foundation shall not consider the applicant’s race, age, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity or disabilities.

7. No Relatives. Marion Community Foundation shall not award a scholarship to an applicant who are close relative of: Cecilia Reszczynski, Eugene Reszczynski, a member of the Board of Trustees of Marion Community Foundation, or an employee of the Marion Community Foundation. For purposes of this paragraph, a “close relative” is a spouse, child, parent, grandchild, sibling, first cousin, niece, nephew, aunt, or uncle.