Oakland Lodge No. 61 Scholarships

Download Scholarship Application Form Here

SCHOLARSHIP INFORMATION
Universities and Colleges Offering Four-Year Programs and Community Colleges and Vocational Schools

The Scholarship Board of Oakland Lodge No. 61 is eager to be of assistance to the children and grandchildren of Master Masons of Oakland Lodge No. 61 who are in good standing (or were in good standing at the time of their death) who seek a higher education. For the student who attends a four-year college or university, the annual scholarship is $4,000 per year for a maximum of four years. For those who attend a two-year college program or an accredited vocational school, the annual scholarship is $4,000 per year for a maximum of two years.

The policy governing selection of students applying for Oakland Lodge No. 61 Scholarships are as follows:

  1. An applicant for a scholarship from Oakland Lodge No. 61 must be the child or grandchild of a Master Mason in good standing of Oakland Lodge No. 61 (or who was in good standing at the time of his death).
  2.  In the event that Oakland Lodge No. 61 does not award four scholarships, the Scholarship Board may award Scholarships to nieces of nephews of the same qualifications as above and to members in good standing of DeMolay, Jobs Daughters and Rainbow Girls of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties.
  3. The applicant must present evidence of acceptance by an accredited four-year university, college, community college or vocational program before the applicant is issued his/her/their first disbursement.
  4. The applicant must have a high school GPA of 2.5 or better, or if already enrolled in a college, a college GPA of 2.5 or better. The applicant must take and complete a minimum of 12 units per college quarter / semester.
  5. Due to limited funds, the Scholarship Board will select the top students who qualify with the above requirements. This means that even if the applicant meets all of the above requirements, it is possible that he/she/they may not receive a scholarship.

As stated in the Application Package, the deadline for the application must be submitted by March 31st of the current year. NO LATE APPLICATIONS WILL BE CONSIDERED AND NO APPLICATION THAT IS NOT COMPLETE IN EVERY DETAIL WILL BE ACCEPTED. 

Inquiries should be directed to Scholarship@Oakland61.org or Tim World at 510-415-9292.

Application Procedures

  1. Any additional comments that you would care to make relative to this application can be included as an attached document and emailed to the scholarship committee.
  2. It is understood that awards are only for study in:
    1. ACCREDITED colleges and universities offering four-year programs, or
    2. ACCREDITED community colleges or vocational schools offering two-year programs.
  3. The application must show the following supportive data:
    1. COMPLETE APPLICATION FORM
    2. PHOTO which may be used for publicity such as on the Lodge website and for news releases.
    3. CURRENT TRANSCRIPT showing achievement of a cumulative, high school GPA of 3.0 or better, or a college transcript showing a GPA of 2.5 or better.
    4. TWO LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION from a schoolteacher, counselor or an adult who has known the applicant for at least three years.
    5. ATTACH EVIDENCE OF ACCEPTANCE (if applicable), if entering for the first time or evidence of good standing (official transcript), if in a continuing status, issued by the college or school. You do not have to be accepted to a program in order to apply for the scholarship.
    6. ATTACH PERSONAL LETTER explaining why Oakland Lodge No. 61 should extend financial resources to you.
    7. ATTACH SIGNED “STATEMENT BY APPLICANT”
  4. After completing this application, applicant should save the PDF documents as “(Your last name)-2025 Scholarship Application”. Have the application and all supporting documents scanned and emailed to the following address: scholarship@Oakland61.org or allow enough time to have hard copies delivered and received by the deadline.
  5. The DEADLINE for this scholarship application and other required materials to be submitted is: March 31st
  6. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the application, supporting documents or any of the requirements, do not hesitate to contact the scholarship committee for support and answers to your questions.

The application and supporting materials are to be submitted electronically to: 

The Scholarship Board, Oakland Lodge No. 61 at Scholarship@Oakland61.org

Applicants who comply with all of the above requirements will be invited to a personal interview (if possible) or a zoom interview.

Requirements For Retaining Scholarship

To continue to receive a scholarship throughout the four-year course of study in a university, college or throughout the two-year course of student at a community college or vocational school, each recipient must conform to the following guidelines:

  1. Maintain a satisfactory scholarship record, which is defined as an overall GPA of 2.5 or higher and maintain a class load of a minimum of twelve units, primarily in academic solids (if you drop or withdraw from classes be sure your earned units will not fall below 12 units).
  2. Each student should try to plan his class schedules to lead to his graduation at the end of four years in a university or college or two years when attending a community college or vocational school. Normally, scholarships or financial aid will not be given for additional time in school.
  3. No student will ever receive more than eight scholarship checks from Oakland Lodge No. 61.  The recipient could receive four checks while in a 2-year college or vocational program and upon transferring to a 4-year college receive an additional four checks (totaling eight). Or a student could earn all eight checks while attending a 4-year college or university. Failure to provide the necessary renewal paperwork or when that paperwork does not meet our requirements it will result in that semester’s disbursement being retained by the Lodge.
  4. A participant in the Lodge’s scholarship program may be absent from his course of study for a maximum of twelve concurrent months without penalty. The intent to take time off will need to be communicated to the Scholarship Board Chairman in a timely manner.
  5. A recipient must continue to demonstrate exemplary citizenship.
  6. Each recipient must supply transcripts every January 10th and July 10th at completion of the Fall and Spring semesters to the Scholarship Board. Awards will be mailed to the last address of record, after verification of GPA, units earned and evidence of enrollment in the new semester. Awards are given twice a year.
  7. The recipient must notify the Chairman of the Scholarship Board immediately in the event that they move, changes schools or discontinue attendance at school.

The Scholarship Board of Oakland Lodge No. 61 reserves the right to terminate a scholarship award to any student who fails to conform to the requirements listed above.

For any questions on the Scholarship Programs of Oakland Lodge No. 61, please contact the Scholarship Board Chairman as follows: scholarship@oakland61.org or call/text Tim World at 510-415-9292

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