Hastings College offers financial aid to children of Presbyterian ministers 

Hastings College, Hastings, Nebraska, has announced a significant change in its approach to financial assistance for children of full-time Presbyterian ministers. Effective for the 2007-08 academic year, dependent children of ordained clergy members actively employed by a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation or program will be eligible to receive additional assistance to attend Hastings College. 

“We take our Presbyterian heritage very seriously,” said Dr. Phillip Dudley, Hastings College president. “One way we can serve the church is to financially assist the children of those individuals most closely associated with its mission.”   

Eligible students will receive a $2,000 per year scholarship regardless of financial need. Those who complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each year may be eligible for additional scholarships, grants, loans and/or work study programs to ensure that Hastings College is affordable.  

“The ministry is not generally considered to be a lucrative profession. We plan to meet 100 percent of the demonstrated need of these students,” said Dudley. “If a dependent child of a Presbyterian minister believes Hastings College is the right place for him or her to study, cost should not be a deterrent.” 

Hastings College, founded in 1882, is a private, four-year liberal arts institution affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). A total of 64 majors in 32 areas of study and 12 pre-professional programs are offered to 1,137 students.  The college was cited among top liberal arts colleges, national bachelor’s category, in U.S. News and World Report, America’s Best Colleges 2007, and was listed as a Best Midwestern College by The Princeton Review 2007, and as a Best Buy in College Education by Barron’s.  In 2003, Hastings College received a $2 million grant from Lilly Endowment, Inc., and established the Vocation and Values Program.