Ray Bradbury, author of the iconic, dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 once famously said, “You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”

Books are how we record and understand our past, present, and future. They are our portals to other worlds, minds, and ideas. They fuel our creativity, inspire our ambition, and teach us empathy.

From art to science to business, the world tends to be shaped by those who read. The world’s most successful people attribute much of their success to reading, from legendary investor and philanthropist Charlie Munger (“In my whole life, I have known no wise people who didn't read all the time — none, zero.”) to arguably the most successful storyteller of the modern era J.K. Rowling (“If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book.”).

Whether it be fiction, philosophy, or physics, books and storytelling are one of the few forms that cut across nearly every country, culture, and creed.

The purpose of The Bookworm Scholarship is to support and inspire the next generation of readers, in the belief not only that they will continue to disproportionately impact the world, but also that they will lead, create, and strive with greater empathy, imagination, and ambition.

The scholarship is open to students at any educational level and field of study. The only application requirement is that students be big dreamers and avid readers who shape their goals and worldviews in some form through the books they read.

Students applying to the scholarship will be required to write an essay sharing how a book or author has influenced their ambitions. Essays on books from any genre will be considered.

From Toni Morrison (“If you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.”) to Richard Feynman (“You have no responsibility to live up to what other people think you ought to accomplish. I have no responsibility to be like they expect me to be. It's their mistake, not my failing.”), lovers of any author or genre are invited to apply to The Bookworm Scholarship.

While not required, working or volunteering at libraries, organizing book clubs, or engaging with the literary community in other ways will be a plus on student applications. The potential impact of the scholarship on students’ abilities to achieve their goals will be considered as well.