December 3, 2025 – Applications are open for the Junior League of Cleveland’s Scholarship for Women Reclaiming Their Education, which assists women across Northeast Ohio whose academic journeys have been interrupted.

The program offers awards of up to $5,000 for non-traditional students and women who have aged out of foster care. Scholarship funds can be applied to tuition and essential needs such as childcare, transportation, technology or textbooks. Applications are due Feb. 1.

“The Junior League of Cleveland believes every woman deserves the chance to finish what she started,” said Scholarship Chair Pamela Tyll-Radisek, “Life circumstances, family responsibilities or unexpected challenges can delay a woman’s education. This scholarship exists to help remove those barriers and open doors for women ready to take their next step.”

Tyll-Radisek said eligibility includes permanent residency in one of eight Ohio counties — Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina or Trumbull –and enrollment in an accredited college, trade program or graduate school within the state.

“A non-traditional student is a woman who has started her college or technical program, but has had to drop out because of whatever life has thrown at her,” she said. “Whether that is caregiving, finances or even cases where a spouse was activated to active duty and she physically couldn’t return to school, now these women are back, re-enrolled and committed to getting to the finish line.”

The scholarship fund, established in 2004, originally focused on non-traditional students and expanded in 2011 to include women who have aged out of foster care, a population the Junior League has supported through past service initiatives.

Over the last three years, the program has seen major changes aimed at improving access and equity. Tyll-Radisek said the committee moved to a fully digital application, created a clear evaluation rubric and now requires judges to complete implicit bias training.

“We designed an application that was inaccessible for the very people we needed to reach,” she said. “We started calling past applicants and judges to learn where the barriers were built into the system. Our goal was to build a process that aligns with our mission, to support women who are clawing their way back to their education.”

Interest has grown significantly since those changes. The committee now sees between 20 and 25 applicants each year.

“These women have the most incredible stories,” Tyll-Radisek said. “They are passionate. They hold on to their dreams with a tenacity that is inspiring. The women who consistently win are invested in their communities, passionate about their education and dedicated to making sure the pathway is easier for the women behind them.”

She encourages eligible applicants not to count themselves out.

“This funding is dedicated to women who have not given up,” she said. “It is so unique, a scholarship designed specifically for women returning to their education. We want them to know they deserve to finish.”

Scholarship recipients will be notified by March 1 and honored at the Junior League of Cleveland’s Spring Together event.

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