JSA – Junior State of America

A new video highlighting The Junior Statesmen Foundation’s (JSA) highly acclaimed AP U.S. History course at the JSA Summer School at the University of Virginia has just been released. High school students will have the opportunity to learn about United States history at the university founded by Thomas Jefferson. The AP U.S. History course that the student will take during this intensive 5-week program is equivalent to a full two-semester course and will prepare students to take the Advanced Placement examination in U.S. History administered in May by the College Board. Continue Reading

The message on her fundraising page couldn’t be clearer: “THANK YOU SO MUCH! I AM GOING TO PRINCETON!” In just 7 days, Jazmin Vergara managed to raise nearly $3,500 to attend the JSA Summer School program at Princeton University.

After completing the JSA Fundraising Academy webinar, Jazmin got right to work. “I first began the fundraising challenge through my school since I had talked to teachers about the program. For the first three days a great majority of the teachers had helped me gain more donations for me by putting the link on their Facebook or Twitter. From there, I realized I can’t just rely on my school… So, I went ahead and sent e-mails to my local mayor, the city council, the board of education, and others,“ she says.

She also faced some struggles. A week after starting her campaign, no one had donated to her. So she decided to, in her words, “kick it up.” “I started going face-to-face to local businesses and telling them my story of how I found this program and how much it means it to me to be able to go and gave them the link [to my fundraising page]. Then, I decided to e-mail the local news outlet… and they responded gleefully and got a story about me out in one night. I also had the help of one of the Board of Education members who I had sent an e-mail to and had sent a new personal referral to about fifty of his friends in the community”

Her increased efforts paid off: “With the press, the city, and my family coming together I felt as if the link to my page was on a billboard! Within about the whole school day I had checked my e-mail and the donations just kept coming. By the end of the day at three o’clock, I got the e-mail saying that I had met what I needed. “

Jazmin also has some advice for other students looking to raise the money for summer school: “Do not be afraid to e-mail anyone and everyone. The more you get your name out there, the more people will want to become invested in you. Brag about yourself!“

JSA Fundraising Academies, which can help students learn how to put together a successful campaign to raise the funds need for summer school, as Jazmin did, are held on Tuesday (7pm ET) and Wednesday (6pm PT) evenings each week through May. To sign up, send an email to FundraisingAcademy@jsa.org with your name and which day you would like to attend Fundraising Academy.

To start your own fundraising page, go to www.jsa.org/summerfundraising

Attending JSA Summer School can be life changing.  Which is why we want to share the many reasons we’re confident you will learn, grow and become better prepared for college success by attending this unique summer program.

JSA is holding special webinars about the JSA Summer programs for interested students, parents and educators.

JSA Summer Programs Webinar

Register now at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/3771748544495837184

Hear from members of the JSA Summer School Leadership Team
A JSA Summer School Program Director will take you through key highlights and activities, plus discuss application instructions and fundraising options.

Get a student perspective

The webinar will feature a student guest speaker who has recently attended a JSA Summer School program. Learn all about their experiences, and what you, as a student, can expect.

Get the answers you need to secure your space this summer

During our open forum Q&A session you can ask anything! Whether you have a question for the JSA Program Director, or the student presenter, you have an opportunity to talk directly with the people who make the JSA Summer School experience so special.

Due to high demand, we have opened up more space at our programs and can take additional student applications until April 30th. Also, our scholarship committee will be holding its final round of meetings over the next several weeks to identify deserving students. Over $150,000 in partial scholarship funds is still available – claim your scholarship by completing your application today!

We look forward to you and your parents attending this special webinar. It’s a great way to learn more about the JSA Summer School programs. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get an insider’s look at what JSA Summer School can do for you!

Please register for one of the dates and times below. We look forward to talking with you soon!
Tuesday afternoon April 2 at 4 p.m. Pacific 6 p.m. Central 7 p.m. Eastern
Elizabeth Ventura, JSA Senior Program Director – JSA Summer School at Georgetown Session II

Simone Klein, JSA Summer School graduate

Wednesday evening April 3 at 7:30 p.m. Pacific 9:30 p.m. Central 10:30 p.m. Eastern
Tracy Thomas, JSA Program Director – JSA Summer School at Georgetown Session I

Julianna Joss, JSA Summer School graduate

Thursday evening April 4 at 5 p.m. Pacific 7 p.m. Central 8 p.m. Eastern
Jaime Contreras, JSA Program Director – JSA Summer School at Princeton

Arnela Colic, JSA Summer School graduate

Register now at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/3771748544495837184

JSA runs weekly Fundraising Academy webinars designed to give you every tool necessary to raise funds for JSA Summer School programs. Students and parents are able to sign-up for these hands-on webinars which help put together a fundraising strategy to raise the portion of tuition not covered by scholarships or family contributions. To kick start your fundraising campaign with The Junior Statesmen Fundraising Academy sign up for one today by emailing fundraisingacademy@jsa.org

With the help of our step-by-step 2013 Fundraising Manual and the personal assistance offered by our friendly and knowledgeable staff, students are able to conquer the financial challenge of raising tuition for the JSA Summer School by attending the Fundraising Academy. We offer the “webinars” via the GoToMeeting web conferencing service on Tuesday (7pm ET) and Wednesday (6pm PT) evenings November through May. To sign up for your preferred date, RSVP with your contact information to fundraisingacademy@jsa.org. We will send you a link to connect to the meeting on your chosen day. You are able to attend more than one seminar to assist your fundraising progress.

The Junior State also offers our students the ability to create an online fundraising webpage which allows you to receive and track donations for your participation in the JSA Summer School easily. With your own personal profile you will be able to show your donors how you are meeting your goal and why you are motivated to be the next John McCain or Hillary Clinton.

Don’t take our word for the program’s success – ask JSA Summer School graduate Simone Klein. “The fundraising academy really helped me to see how reasonable affording summer school for my family was! It taught me new ways to reach out to earn funds and how to contact individuals and large groups I would have not thought of otherwise.”

Fundraising Helpful Hints:
- Be proactive! It is harder to say no to someone who is following-up in person and showing why to support a cause!
- Give information or a brief presentation to your donors when you come back – it will show how they helped shape your experience.
- Always send thank you letters! Let the donor know just how much their help means to your success and education!

The Junior Statesmen Foundation is able to offer both merit-based and financial need-based scholarships to help finance your summer with us. Each year, JSA awards more than $750,000 in scholarship assistance to our students. Our scholarship committee meets weekly to decide scholarship allowances and awards are based on financial need, academic excellence, demonstrated leadership abilities, and evidence that an applicant is highly motivated to attend the program. JSA Scholarships range from partial to half tuition scholarships for our domestic programs based on eligibility. Unfortunately we are unable to offer any tuition discounts or scholarships for the JSA Diplomat Program.

To begin a scholarship application download the Scholarship Application Form. It is important that you fill out all of the information on the application to help the committee view your overall situation. This form is necessary for both financial and merit based aid. Your information will be kept confidential and will only be used for determining financial scholarship amounts.

Once you have completed the application, mail or fax it back to the appropriate office for consideration.

For the JSA Summer School at Georgetown or the University of Virginia
Admissions Office
JSA Summer School
1411 K Street NW, Suite 200
Washington, D.C. 20005
Fax: 202-296-7839

For the JSA Summer School at Stanford or Princeton
Admissions Office
JSA Summer School
800 S. Claremont Street #202
San Mateo, CA 94402
Fax: 650-347-7200

Scholarship Application Helpful Hints:
- Looking for ways to show how motivated you are for the program? Try sending in an additional letter supporting your need for a scholarship with the application. Or sign up for one of our free Fundraising Webinars to start raising your tuition today!
- Be sure to fill out all necessary information before returning your form to prevent delays in the notification process.