“Openness may not completely disarm prejudice, but it’s a good place to start.” – Jason Collins
Coming out was not easy for me. I grew up in a conservative family that never considered the possibility that I could be gay. So I held my secret for 21 years.
When I finally came out in my last year of college, I finally felt at ease. I could be myself for the first time in my life. And while it’s still not always easy with my family, the acceptance and comfort I feel today is far greater than my first two decades of life.
The Mike Rhoades It’s Okay to be Gay Scholarship exists to promote more openness and acceptance of being a gay man in our world.
The scholarship is open to undergraduate students in any field of study. The only requirement is that you are a gay male who wants to promote more openness in our world.
To apply for the scholarship, you will need to write a short essay about challenges you’ve faced as a gay male.
How have challenges you’ve faced as a gay man shaped your understanding of the world?
The application deadline is Apr 30, 2021. Winners will be announced on May 31, 2021.
Your privacy is a top priority on the Bold.org platform, and you can find our privacy policy in full here. You may opt out of communications from Bold.org at any time, and unless we’ve first notified you and gotten your consent, you’ll never receive communication from any third parties related to personal information you give us.
The scholarship award is $500.
The winner will be publicly announced on May 31, 2021. Prior to the announcement date, we may contact finalists with additional questions about their application. We will work with donors to review all applications according to the scholarship criteria. Winners will be chosen based on the merit of their application.
We will send the award check to the winner’s academic institution in their name, and in the name of their institution (depending on the school’s requirements).
Before we award the scholarship, the winner will be required to verify their academic enrollment status by providing a copy of their most recent transcript.
If you have any questions about this scholarship or the Bold.org platform, just email contact@bold.org and we’ll get back to you as quickly as we can.
Yes. The terms and conditions for this scholarship can be found here.