TIAA Bank to Award ‘Be the Change’ Scholarships

Four high school seniors will receive $5,000 for writing about solutions to social injustice

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – November 9, 2022 – To help support the fight against racism, social injustice and discrimination, TIAA Bank will award four scholarships to students who write about how they would address those problems.

The 3rd annual scholarship program is part of TIAA’s “Be the Change” campaign, an award-winning initiative. High school seniors at 13 participating Jacksonville schools are eligible for the $5,000 scholarships. The essays must be submitted by Dec. 31.

“Our core values focus on improving the communities where we live and work,” said Eric Loller, the Community Reinvestment Act Officer for TIAA Bank. “What these students share is inspiring.”

Winners will be honored at Jacksonville’s 2023 Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast.

“TIAA Bank’s Be the Change scholarship program gives students a voice to express the problems and the challenges our community faces,” said Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry. “More importantly, it gives students a chance to suggest how we can work together to find solutions.”

A committee of TIAA Bank associates with expertise in diversity and inclusion will choose the winners based on factors, such as creativity, message content and writing quality.

Last year, for example, one scholarship winner explained how the nation’s public schools are more segregated than they have been in 50 years. While Jacksonville students can increase diversity by attending schools outside their neighborhoods, many lower-income families don’t have the resources to do that. The scholarship winner suggested that Jacksonville officials offer city transit passes to help.

Be the Change was launched in 2020 by TIAA, the parent company of TIAA Bank. The program has included educational opportunities and a “Race Against Isms” 5K run that spurred donations of books featuring broadly diverse characters.

To learn more about the scholarship program, visit https://www.tiaabank.com/scholarship. To learn more about Be the Change, visit https://www.tiaa.org/public/about-tiaa/news-press/press-releases/2020/06-30. To learn more about TIAA’s social justice initiatives, visit https://www.tiaabank.com/about/social-justice.

About TIAA Bank

TIAA Bank, a division of TIAA, FSB, provides full-service, nationwide banking services to consumer, commercial and institutional clients through a variety of channels, including online and mobile applications, and Florida-based financial centers.