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The William and Susanna Botts Scholarship for Immigrants
The Botts family has been supportive of and advocates for the immigrant community for many years. Susanna taught English as a Second Language in Stafford County schools for eleven years until her retirement in 2010. Since that time, she has continued to work part-time with county ESL students; in addition, she has worked with immigrant families in their homes. Bill provided legal assistance to lawfully represent immigrants in civil matters for many of his 40 years as a legal aid attorney. In 2002, while Executive Director of Rappahannock Legal Services (now Legal Aid Works), he encouraged the Board of Directors to give up all federal funding for the legal aid program so that the organization could represent undocumented immigrants as well. Since 2016, he has served as a volunteer attorney for Baptist-based LUCHA Ministries Immigration Legal Services.
Bill and Susanna have also worked together through Catholic Charities to assist endangered children to come to the United States as refugees from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. They have worked through their church, Fredericksburg United Methodist, tutoring ESL students at Hugh Mercer Elementary School. All of their efforts have been informed and inspired by their experiences on over a dozen church mission trips to Central America and Mexico.
The Botts believe supporting the educational dreams of immigrant youth will serve not only the immigrant community, but also the community at large. The William and Susanna Botts Scholarship for Immigrants will award at least two annual scholarships of $1,000 to support high achieving and or/highly motivated immigrants or refugees in our community. Applicants must be foreign-born and must be a graduating senior from a local PD 16 high school with demonstrated financial need.
Scholarships are eligible for yearly renewal but require reapplication and will be considered along with all applicants for the award.
To contribute to this fund, simply click Donate Now.
Donations may also be mailed to:
The Community Foundation
The William and Susanna Botts Scholarship for Immigrants
PO Box 208, Fredericksburg, VA 22404-0208
Please make your check payable to:
The William and Susanna Botts Scholarship for Immigrants
About Scholarship Funds
Donors help area students achieve their dreams by establishing or contributing to a scholarship fund at The Community Foundation. Scholarship funds are flexible and can be structured to benefit students at any education level, or for a specific institution. Donors often use scholarship funds to honor or memorialize a loved one.
Donors maintain an active voice in the student selection process while they rely upon The Community Foundation’s Scholarship Committee to handle the necessary paperwork and ensure that scholarships are distributed equitably.
Let us help you create the fund that works best for your charitable giving goals!
Apply for a Scholarship
The online application portal will walk students through our application process.
- Students submit general information such as address and high school, as well as information about extracurricular activities or awards.
- Students use the online application to provide the name and email address of their guidance counselor and other individuals. These contacts will receive an email requesting the student’s high school transcript or a personal reference.
Call 540 373-9292 or e-mail scholarships@cfrrr.org for more information.