ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE THOMAS E. LAING Sr. SCHOLARSHIP FOR JAGAS STUDENTS
All applicants for The Thomas E. Laing Scholarship must meet all of the following criteria:
1. Must be a Jamaican national
2. Must be currently enrolled in the Jamaican-German Automotive School (JAGAS)
3. Must be in financial need / must have experienced financial hardship in your life
4. Must attend in person scholarship reception (on a Saturday in September)

The Grace Scholarship Fund was founded in 2013 to provide academic scholarships, service opportunities and leadership experiences for young Jamaican students of outstanding promise.  The fund provides scholarship winners with the financial assistance to help them attend colleges, universities and trade schools both domestically and abroad.  Our hope is that recipients will go on to achieve exemplary success in the classrooms and in their chosen fields of expertise – all the while, making Jamaica proud!

SCHOLARSHIP DETAILS
Thomas E. Laing, Sr. was born January 14, 1948 in St. Andrew, Jamaica.  He attended both Bull Bay Primary and Auto Body Trade school in Jamaica. In November of 1974, he migrated with his wife Eileen Laing to the United States.  Thomas worked as an Auto Body Technician for various dealerships for over 40 years.  His last place of employment was Liberty Auto City (Libertyville, IL), where he worked for 19 years. Thomas hosted the Jamaican Independence celebrations for over 30 years and founded the Jamaican Soccer Team, XAYMACA, in Lake County, IL.  He received the Leadership Award for Sports for Dedicated Service and Commitment by the Jamaican Consul in 2002.  Thomas cherished his family, which consisted of 7 children, 16 grandchildren, and 4 great-grandchildren. Thomas passed away on October 24, 2014 from pancreatic cancer.  The Thomas E. Laing Sr. Scholarship is contributed by the Laing Family in his honor.

SCHOLARSHIP CONDITIONS
Scholarships may be used for funding related to current enrollment at JAGAS.  Students may use the scholarship funds to help cover the costs of tuition, fees, books, room and board, computers, health insurance and other education related expenses.

APPLICATION TIMELINE & SUBMISSION
Application Deadline – June 1st, 2019.  No exceptions.  All eligible applications are due by 11:59pm EST.  

DATA PRIVACY
The Grace Scholarship Fund is committed to maintaining the confidentiality of the application information data that you provide to us.  The Grace Scholarship Fund understands and acknowledges that you have reposed trust in us to protect the confidentiality and security of all the information and data.  

The Grace Scholarship Fund will not use your information and data for purposes other than this specific application review. The Grace Scholarship Fund will not sell, or otherwise disseminate or make available to third parties the information and data that you provide, in whole or in part.  The Grace Scholarship Fund will restrict access to the information and data that you provide to those persons who will evaluate your information and data for purposes of determining your eligibility for, and making awards of, the financial assistance that The Grace Scholarship Fund provides.  If you win a scholarship, you may be asked to feature language from your application for the use of GraceFund newsletters.