Dark & Lovely Presents: Building Beautiful Futures Scholarship For Young Black Female Students

Scholarship snapshot

The Building Beautiful Futures Scholarship is one of the many scholarship opportunities available for Black students through the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Since its inception in 1909, NAACP has spearheaded activities to align with its vision of ensuring a society where all individuals have equal rights without racial discrimination.

Our previous article provided an overview on 11 NAACP scholarships that are currently available. This publication will discuss thoroughly the Beautiful Futures scholarship and how you can clinch this offer.

About Building Beautiful Futures Scholarship

Powered by Dark & Lovely, in partnership with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), The Building Beautiful Futures scholarship sets out to groom young black females or females of color between the ages of 18 – 25 years for success in their education, work, and life in general.

Initiated in 1972, Dark & Lovely was created with Black women’s hair in mind, with the goal to empower and support all Black women.

The partnership between Dark & Lovely and the NAACP Youth and College division aims to provide educational equity to Black women, giving them access to scholarships, mentorship programs, and career coaching opportunities. The scholarship provides grants to undergraduates pursuing 4-year degrees, as well as recent graduates in order to lessen the financial burden associated with attending college. 

The Building Beautiful Futures scholarship is renewable for four years under the condition of your ability to maintain a GPA of 2.7 or higher.

Objectives of the Building Beautiful Futures Scholarship

The Keynote of the Building Beautiful Futures scholarship is  “Closing the opportunity gap”. This is in recognition of the fact that, the circumstances in which people are born, which includes: race, the color of their skin, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and even ZIP code can, unfortunately, determine the opportunities available to such individual, especially in their education and career. 

The opportunity gap is obvious from the following facts:

Opportunity Gap	Supporting Data	Source
Not enough Black women are getting college degrees	51.4% of white women have college degrees vs 36.1% of Black women. That’s a 15% point gap.	ED Trust
Black women don’t have the same career advancement opportunities as other races and genders.	For every 100 men promoted to the managerial level, only 58 women are promoted to the same role.	Lean in
Black women don’t have access to enough mentors.	50% of Black women are thinking of quitting in the next two years citing a lack of support and mentors as the main reason.	Working Mother
Black women have more student debts.	Black women owe 22% more in student debts than white women	The American Association of University Women via CNBC

The Building Beautiful Futures scholarship through Dark & Lovely in partnership with NAACP aims to close this opportunity gap as shown in the above facts. It supports, empowers, and assists Black women in overcoming these obstacles that hinder their educational or career advancement. With the help of this scholarship, Black women will be able to close the widening opportunity gap that exists between them and other women in the community.

Scholarship amount

The Building Beautiful Futures scholarship awards $10,000 to two students enrolled in a 4-year institution. It is renewable for four years, bringing the total award value to $40,000 for each student.

Scholarship Requirements

To be eligible for the Building Beautiful Futures scholarship, a student has to meet all the following criteria:

• Must be a member of the NAACP organization. This article will address some information on how you can become a member.
• Must be below the age of 25 at the time of application submission.
• Must be a Black female or a female of color. 
• Must be a U.S resident or citizen. 
• Must be enrolled full-time or accepted to an accredited college or university in the U.S.
• Eligible grade levels that can apply are High School seniors, College freshmen, College sophomores, College juniors, or College seniors.
• Must possess a GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 system. 
• Must demonstrate an interest in pursuing a career in communications, marketing, finance, business, or science.
• Must indicate financial need.
• Most importantly, students must be academically ambitious, must show leadership qualities, must be aspiring entrepreneurs, and community volunteers.

How to apply for the Building Beautiful Future Scholarship

You must be a member of the NAACP organization in order to be eligible to receive the Scholarship. NAACP membership comprises three sections namely: The Regular Annual membership, Lifetime membership, and Corporate membership. The NAACP encourages anyone who desires to join to choose a membership type that best fits them. If you are not already a member, you can join by visiting the organization’s website and completing an online application.

After applying and becoming a full-fledged member if you weren’t already, you’ll need to apply with the following credentials:

• Copy of your NAACP membership card or membership application. 
• Official transcript. 
• Two recommendation letters from teachers or professors in your major field of study
• One page essay
• Your student aid report.
• Evidence of acceptance or full-time enrollment in any accredited University or college across the States.

Application process

If you are eligible, you need to apply online with all necessary credentials through the NAACP’s Inspire Initiatives scholarship portal. You can access that portal here.

A scholarship committee made up of NAACP leaders scores applications, reviews transcripts, and selects recipients for approval. If selected, you will receive a notification from the Inspire scholarship portal. The selection committee’s decision is final and cannot be appealed.

Scholarship Timeline

Detailed information about the Building Beautiful Futures scholarship for 2023 will be available in the Spring of 2023. Be sure to follow up on the latest of this scholarship on the NAACP website.

The Building Beautiful Futures Scholarship is part of a series of scholarship opportunities available for Black students through the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Find other opportunities in the series in the list below:

How to Get NAACP’s Agnes Jones Jackson Scholarship Award 2023
‘All-American Homecoming’ Grand Slam Scholarship for HBCU Students
Dark & Lovely Presents: Building Beautiful Futures Scholarship for Young Black Female Students
Walmart’s Empowering a Better Tomorrow Scholarship for African American Students
NAACP’s Hubertus W. V. Willems Scholarship for Black Male Students
James Weldon Johnson Scholarship for Students From Underrepresented Groups
Katherine McIntyre Scholarship Awards for 25 African Americans
The NAACP Creative Sole Scholarship for African American Students in Creative Fields
The NAACP X Society Awards Scholarship for African American Students
NAACP’s Uplift Scholarship for African American Students
Write Her Future Scholarship for Young Black Female Undergraduates 2023

At Scholarship Monitor, we are committed to providing you with up-to-date information on scholarship opportunities. Make sure to always check back for more updates and take advantage of the resources we have provided to help you achieve your academic and career goals.