Dr. Joyce Ann Carter Memorial Scholarship Fund

For Dr. Joyce Ann Carter, higher education and student success were the backbone of her life and career. Both she and her husband, Gerry, obtained Ph.D. degrees and were long-time faculty at Central Michigan University where she held the Director of Academic Assistance position. By working in academic assistance, Dr. Carter developed a passion for aiding struggling students in non-traditional situations. After spending many years guiding students to financial stability, Dr. Carter realized the need for more resources for these students.

The Dr. Joyce Ann Carter Memorial Scholarship Fund was established to address the need for financial support for non-traditional students who are attempting to follow their dream of attending college. Many of these students are single parents who work low-wage jobs and have very limited financial resources at their disposal. Unlike new high school graduates, non-traditional students have few scholarship opportunities to support the costs of a college education. The scholarship offers financial assistance to students’ ages 25-45 years of age that were interrupted due to financial or personal struggle. The scholarship fund is a legacy held at MPACF in hopes that it will continue to grow and provide opportunities to these students.

Dr. Carter died of cancer in 2004. During her 20 years as Director of Academic Assistance at Central Michigan University, her chief concern was always for those students who had personal problems that hampered their chances of success. She was especially enthusiastic about helping non-traditional students returning to school.

Scholarship Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicant shall be a non-traditional student 25-45 years of age;
• Applicant shall have successfully completed about 2 years of college-level academic work in the Humanities; and
• Applicant shall intend to apply their university education, at least in part, to accomplishing some specific socially useful end. (Example: Becoming a high school counselor, or serving a two-year stint in the Peace Corps, or helping migrant or sweatshop workers in some way, etc.) Coursework examples may include: language, literature, art, music, history, philosophy, and religion. Careers may include those in the public sector (government) or the third sector (nonprofit) of the economy.  Please describe in the written essay.  

This fund is currently awards in odd years.

Online Scholarship Portal:

The application cycle for 2025 has been completed.  The application will go live on January 1, 2026.  All scholarship applications must be completed using our online portal, and must be submitted no later than Wednesday, March 4, 2026 at 11:59 pm. Students will not need to make multiple copies of application materials, and school administrators will be able to submit transcripts electronically. However, the online scholarship portal will require students to answer more questions in order to determine their eligibility for each scholarship offered. We highly recommend every applicant review the Frequently Asked Questions before proceeding to the Scholarship Portal.