William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship

Each year, the Chicago Federation of Labor awards 10 William A. Lee Memorial Scholarships to high school seniors, five to the winners of the Academic Competition, and five to the winners of the Random Drawing. Applicants must choose to enter either the Random Drawing or Academic Competition for the William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship. Students are not eligible to enter both categories.

The Chicago Federation of Labor renamed the scholarship in 1985 to honor Mr. William A. Lee, the CFL’s longest-serving president. Mr. Lee devoted over 60 years to the cause of labor, civic and community service, with 38 of those years at the CFL.

Deadline to Apply

Completed applications must be received by the Chicago Federation of Labor by 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 20, 2026. Applications should be emailed to scholarship@chicagolabor.org. All parts of the application should be turned in at the same time.

The Chicago Federation of Labor will award 10 William A. Lee Memorial Scholarships, valued at $2,000 each, to five winners of the Academic Competition and five winners of the Random Drawing. The funds may be used at any accredited college or university in the United States.

DEADLINE

Completed applications must be sent electronically to the Chicago Federation of Labor by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 20, 2026. Applications and all supporting materials should be emailed altogether to scholarship@chicagolabor.org.

Scoring System

The winners will be determined based on both their academic achievements and their personal essay. The academic achievements will count as 75 percent of the overall score, with the essay making up the remaining 25 percent. For more information on the academic and essay requirements, see page 2 of the application.

The top five students who score highest based on their overall academic achievements and their essay will win the scholarships.

Eligibility

The applicant must be a senior in high school and graduating in the spring of 2026.

Either the applicant or the applicant’s parent must be a member in good standing of a CFL-affiliated union.

To confirm a union’s affiliation status, please call 312.222.1000.

The applicant must choose to enter either the Academic Competition or Random Drawing for the William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship. Students are not eligible to enter both categories. APPLICANTS ATTEMPTING TO ENTER BOTH CATEGORIES WILL BE DISQUALIFIED FROM BOTH CATEGORIES. Scholarship winners will be notified by email in April 2026.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

RESULTS AND DECISIONS OF THE SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEE AND ACADEMIC COMPETITION SHALL BE FINAL.

The scholarships are entirely unrestricted as to race, religion, political affiliation, or choice of accredited

college or university. The awards will be paid by checks to the winners. There is no restriction as to income of the family nor the acceptance of other scholarship awards by the winners. Any problems must be resolved by the students. Winners will be contacted by the CFL. The names of the winners and their union affiliation will be posted to the CFL website, and excerpts from their essays may be used for promotional purposes as the CFL deems appropriate.

The William A. Lee Memorial Scholarships will be awarded to the winners as soon as possible after selection.

Winners must be present at the William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship presentation to receive their checks.

The presentation will be held in Spring 2026. Once all winners of the Random Drawing and Academic

Competition are determined, a date will be chosen by the Scholarship Committee and sent to the scholarship winners.

HOW TO APPLY

All applicants must complete the William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship Academic Competition Application and the personal essay. Email the COMPLETED application, including electronic copies of high school transcripts; ACT and/or SAT, or other college entrance examination scores; completed Activity Page; and personal essay to: scholarship@chicagolabor.org.

APPLICATION FORM

Both pages 4 and 5 of the William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship Academic Competition Application must be completed to qualify for the scholarship.

APPLICANT INFORMATION:

This section of the application must be completed on both pages and signed by the applicant. Once the applicant has completed the top section, the applicant must obtain the signatures of a Chief Executive officer of the applicant's (or applicant's parent's) Local Union and the principal of the applicant's high school, as outlined below.

CERTIFICATION OF CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF LOCAL UNION:

This section of the application must be completed and signed by a Chief Executive Officer of the applicant’s (or applicant’s parent’s Local Union (example: President, Recording Secretary, Financial Secretary or Business Manager).

Please note: Business Agents, stewards and delegates do not qualify as a CEO.

CERTIFICATION OF HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL:

This section of the application must be completed and signed by the principal of the applicant’s high school or other authorized high school representative.

PERSONAL ESSAY

In a PDF document, all applicants must answer the question: How has the Labor Movement impacted my life?

Essay Guidelines:

• 500 words or less
• Typed, single-spaced. Font should be 12-point Times New Roman, or similar-sized font
• 1-inch margin on all four sides of the page
• Upper left corner should include:
• Applicant’s Name and Phone Number, as listed on the application
• No additional information about the applicant should be included on the essay

APPLICATION SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Email the following items to scholarship@chicagolabor.org by Friday, Feb. 20, 2026.

1. Completed Application with appropriate signatures from union CEO and high school principal

2. Official ACT or SAT Report (in addition to school transcript listing, if provided).

3. Transcripts that provide 7 semesters of academic work (6 semesters will be considered incomplete/ unacceptable record).

4. Completed Activity Page (see page 3)

5. Personal Essay

Students should email appropriate signature page from the CFL Application to both their high school principal and union chief executive officer separately to request signatures from both. Once they received the signatures back from the principal and CEO, all materials should be emailed using the following guidelines:

• All documents should be in one email
• All documents should be in their own PDF document as attachments/do not put in the body of the email/no links to other accounts
• All documents should be labeled with student name and item (i.e. John Smith_ACT Report)