Women's Opportunity Awards
The
Women's Opportunity Awards program is Soroptimist's major women's
education project. Through the program, clubs in 19 countries and
territories assist women who provide the primary source of financial
support for their families by giving them the resources they need to
improve their education, skills, and employment prospects.
Achieving Dreams
Each year, more than $1.5 million is disbursed through cash awards at
various levels of the organization. Recipients of the Women's
Opportunity Awards, many of whom have overcome enormous obstacles
including poverty, domestic violence, and drug and alcohol abuse, may
use the awards to offset any costs associated with their efforts to
attain higher education, such as books, childcare and transportation.
Eligible applicants must be women who provide the
primary financial support for their families, and who are enrolled in or
have been accepted to a vocational/skills training program or an
undergraduate degree program. Applicants must demonstrate financial
need. Only residents of Soroptimist International of the Americas' 19
member countries and territories are eligible to apply.
Since the Women's Opportunity Awards program began in 1972,
about $25 million has been disbursed to help tens of thousands of women
achieve their dreams of a better life for themselves and their families.
In 2007, the Women's Opportunity Awards received the Associations
Advance America Summit Award—ASAE & The Center for Association
Leadership's highest level of recognition.
