HCCF releases 2025 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship application

Tyler Best
August 19, 2024 / 5 mins read

The 2025 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship application is now available in Harrison County through Harrison County Community Foundation (HCCF). The Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program (LECSP) will provide 147 scholarships statewide with one being awarded in Harrison County. LECSP scholarships may be used for otherwise unreimbursed full tuition, required fees, and a special allocation of up to $900 per year. The special allocation may cover the costs for required books and required equipment for four years of undergraduate study on a full-time basis leading to a baccalaureate degree at any eligible Indiana public or private nonprofit college or university.

The program, administered statewide by Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI) and locally in Harrison County through HCCF, is open to all Indiana residents who:

  • graduate from an accredited Indiana high school by 2025 and receive their diploma no later than June 30, 2025;
  • intend to pursue a full-time baccalaureate course of study at an eligible college or university in Indiana; and
  • meet the criteria specific to their local community foundation. Visit hccfindiana.org/scholarships for complete information regarding Harrison County’s application criteria.

Students can learn more about the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship in Harrison County and apply for this scholarship by visiting hccfindiana.org/scholarships. Applications must be completed and submitted by Monday, September 30, 2023 at 4 pm EST to be considered.

Lilly Endowment created LECSP for the 1997-98 school year and has supported the program every year since with tuition grants totaling more than $490 million. More than 5,300 Indiana students have received Lilly Endowment Community Scholarships since the program’s inception.

The primary purposes of LECSP are: 1) to help raise the level of educational attainment in Indiana; 2) to increase awareness of the beneficial roles Indiana community foundations can play in their communities; and 3) to encourage and support the efforts of current and past Lilly Endowment Community Scholars to engage with each other and with Indiana business, governmental, educational, nonprofit and civic leaders to improve the quality of life in Indiana generally and in local communities throughout the state.

"We are thrilled the 2025 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship application process is underway and appreciate our ongoing partnership with Lilly Endowment Inc. and ICI,” said Julie Moorman, HCCF President & CEO. “This opportunity is second to none and will transform the life of a student and family right here in Harrison County.”

Harrison County Community Foundation was founded in 1996 by the Harrison County Commissioners, with an initial donation from Caesars Southern Indiana. HCCF’s mission is to inspire and assist everyone in experiencing philanthropy, producing positive and sustainable growth in Harrison County. To date, HCCF has awarded over $126 million in grants, scholarships, and other support to Harrison County nonprofits and residents.

Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based, private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion. The Endowment funds significant programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion. However, it maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana.

Since 1997, Independent Colleges of Indiana has administered the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program statewide with funding provided by Lilly Endowment Inc. Founded in 1948, ICI serves as the collective voice for the state’s 29 private, nonprofit colleges and universities. ICI institutions employ over 22,000 Hoosiers and generate a total local economic impact of over $5 billion annually. Students at ICI colleges have Indiana’s highest four-year, on-time graduation rates, and ICI institutions produce 30 percent of Indiana’s bachelor’s degrees while enrolling 20 percent of its undergraduates.