2024-2025 Matching Student Scholarship Grant Application

The MSS 2024-2025 application is now open!

The Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative is releasing a request for proposals for up to $6.5 million dollars in funding for its Matching Student Scholarship program. Recipients of COSI's MSS program must match the award given by the state 1:1, generating a total of $13 million in new scholarship funds for Colorado students. Non-profit organizations - 501(c)(3) or 501 (c)(4), and their partners are eligible to apply. MSS grants will be awarded within three different categories or program models: County and Institutions of Higher Education.

• $5 million for County grants to provide funding for county residents at public institutions of higher education in the state. This funding is available to one applicant, specifically non-profit organizations, and institution foundations, the COSI Advisory board determines the allocation on an annual basis.
• $1.5 million for Public Institutions of Higher Education grants for use at the institution. This funding is available to one applicant, specifically institution foundations, the COSI Advisory board determines the allocation on an annual basis.

Program Goals:

• Provide financial support to reduce student loan debt.
• Align MSS and CPP to ensure students participating in both programs have the supportive service and financial resources needed to succeed.
• Ensure every COSI Matching Student Scholarships recipient has a specific connection to Community Partner Program services.
• Align the focus areas of each Matching Student Scholarships Grantee with COSI evidence-based models to support COSI goals of reducing student loan debt, completion, and job placement.
•  Scholarships aim to decrease the students' debt by providing sufficient funds not to incur loans and funding to cover tuition and fees and additional college expenses that often create challenges and barriers to completion.

View the full Request for Proposal

Apply on the COSI Portal 

Grant Overview

Grant Term

Grant terms vary and are dependent on the applicant’s scholarship program. COSI has the following grant term requirements:

• The duration of the grant should be determined by the needs of the student population, the ability to disburse funds effectively, and supported by data. 
• For 2024-2025 all awards will be required to start disbursement of their funds no later than the academic year 2026-2027, and complete spending funds by June 30, 2028. 

 

Grant Award

• MSS Grants will be awarded based on the term proposed in the proposal and approved by the COSI Board. Funding will be contingent upon annual appropriations by the State Legislature and any other further discretion at the jurisprudence of the grantor. The MSS grant requires that both the COSI allocation and Matching funds serve the same student population. Funded applicants will be eligible for continued funding in the subsequent years of the grant cycle after successfully demonstrating the following: Submission of all required evaluation materials;
• Adequate progress toward successfully meeting annual objectives; and 
• Full matching and distribution of scholarship funds as outlined in the agreement; and 
• Completed annual report to demonstrate fidelity to proceed in subsequent years.

Organization/Applicant Eligibility

Non-profit organizations - 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4), and their partners who are committed to increasing the availability of scholarship dollars for Colorado students leveraging COSI funds to incentivize new philanthropic monies and promoting student support best practices aimed at completion are eligible to apply. 

Program Participant Criteria

• Participants demonstrate financial need. 

  • This can be determined using Pell-eligibility between 0 and 100% or between 101% and 250%.

  • If you are unable to determine a student’s eligibility using FAFSA, the COSI Eligibility Verification Guidance is a resource for alternative ways to ensure a student meets the financial need threshold.

• Participation in a rigor-based student success program; 

• Undergraduate student;

• Colorado residents for tuition purposes (includes ASSET students); and 

• Attending public area technical colleges, community colleges, four-year institutions of higher education, and research institutions in Colorado.

• Funds are used for a student’s Cost of Attendance.

   

The final agreement between the CDHE and the applicant will consider both state funds and matching funds and will be subject to the same allowable use of funds.

Use of Funds

Scholarships should not be intended to supplant federal, state, local or non-federal funds. Scholarships should provide support for significant funding gaps in cost of attendance to help close the affordability gap for students pursuing postsecondary credentials. To maximize COSI, the matching funds, and support students across the state, students should only receive scholarship funds from one COSI grant per academic year. 

 

COSI recommends the use of the Last Dollar Plus model in the awarding of funds. 

 

Allocations

COSI allocates funds in two categories: county and institution of higher education. 

View the 2024-2025 Scholarship Matching Allocations..

Proposal Elements

All proposals must be submitted by the date(s) indicated in the Timeline section. The proposal consists of the areas outlined below: 

• Intent to Apply-indicate the funds (county or IHE) for which the organization intends to apply and the general organization information and signatory details.
• Proposal-consists of five sections and can be accessed in the portal once the Intent to Apply is completed. A Proposal Preview is provided in this RFP. 

1. Program Design
   • Essentials-COSI’s minimum eligibility requirements and any criteria set by the organization that a student must meet to receive a scholarship. 
   • Pick The Focus- Identify the population of focus for scholarships and credential type.
   • Pick The Grant Timeline- identify the grant term, including start term, length, and first semester funds will be disbursed.
   • Pick The Award Design- Identify the award structure, whether it will be renewable or a single year award. 
   • Grantee Goals & Objectives- provide a program summary of the scholarship program, and annual student disbursement schedule which includes the number of expected students to be served, the amount of each scholarship, how much will be disbursed per semester, and how much will be disbursed for the year. 
   • Pick The Approach to Student Supports-student support programs that will provide the required rigor-based student support services. 
   • Rigor-based services offered- services that MSS Scholars will receive. 
   • Matching Funds- summary of strategies and fundraising efforts to be utilized to meet the 1:1 required match. 

2. Invoice Schedule-outline of the expected (1) incoming funds received by the applicant as new matching funds; (2) payments from the State in the template provided in the online system. 

3. Reporting Requirements-acknowledgement and commitment to reporting requirements.

4. Assurances- certify acknowledgment of assurances.

5. Letter(s) of Support or Resolution- Board of County Commissioners or institutional advisory board, if applicable.

Proposal Submission

COSI encourages applicants to familiarize themselves with the requirements, proposal process, and attend the informational webinars and proposal support sessions outlined in the Timeline section. 

• Late or incomplete proposals will not be accepted. 

• Please do not contact individual staff; instead, please review the proposal for the informational webinar and attend proposal support opportunities es for information and questions. See timeline for dates. 

  • Access the FAQ document and submit questions to cosi.info@dhe.state.co.us. 

• Proposals are accepted via the COSI portal.

  • Complete the portal registration at any time. For support, please contact Alison Grendahl.

  • If the organization has a SurveyMonkey Apply account, please use that account to apply.

     

All proposals submitted to the Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative and the Colorado Department of Higher Education are public records and should not contain confidential data. CDHE is subject to the Colorado Open Records Act and must release full proposals when requested.

Proposal Review

Proposal evaluation and review process:

• MSS Grant proposals will be reviewed using the process defined in Rule 2.03. 

• County and IHE Proposals will be reviewed by the COSI staff to ensure contain all components required by the request for proposal and align with COSI strategic plan and goals. 

  • The timeline for this process is approximately two weeks. COSI staff will contact the Applicant Contact if edits are required during this time. Upon finalization, the proposal will be summarized for the COSI Advisory Board review.  

• If the organization is a current or prior grantee, the Board will consider the organization’s successful completion or progress towards the identified goals and outcomes in their review.

• The COSI Advisory Board will make final decisions regarding grant recipients and award amounts

 

Timeline

Please carefully review the proposal timeline as late submissions and incomplete proposals will not be accepted. 

 

County and institution of higher education proposals will be accepted throughout the two proposal cycles

 

Proposal Task	Fall 2024	Spring 2025
RFP Released	August 5, 2024	August 5, 2024
Proposal Portal Opens	August 5, 2024	August 5, 2024
Intent to Apply	September 13, 2024	January 3, 2025
Proposal Due	September 29, 2024	January 12, 2025
COSI Board Meeting Board meets to review and select awardees	December 12, 2024	March 19, 2025
Grant Award Notification Applicants are notified of the Board’s decision	December 20, 2024	March 26, 2025

Application Support

View the Proposal Informational Webinar which is a recorded session that walks you through the grant and proposal process. COSI staff will also be available to answer your questions in our series of Proposal Support Sessions listed in the table below. 

 

Date Fall Proposal Cycle	Zoom Details
August 15, 2024 at 10:00 am, Proposal Support Session, please view the Informational Webinar above before attending the support session	Link Phone: +1 669 444 9171 Meeting ID: 859 1607 6953 /Passcode: 904654
September 24, 2024, at 1:00 pm,  Proposal Support Session, please view the Informational Webinar above before attending the support session	Link Phone: +1 669 444 9171 Meeting ID: 895 4820 6825 /Passcode: 512672

 

 

 

Date Spring Proposal Cycle	Zoom Details
December 10, 2024 at 1:00 pm, Proposal Support Session, please view the Informational Webinar above before attending the support session	Link Phone: +1 253 205 0468 Meeting ID: 817 1288 7122 /Passcode: 642328
January 9, 2025 at 10:00 am, Proposal Support Session, please view the Informational Webinar above before attending the support session	Link Phone: +1 253 205 0468 Meeting ID: 835 2950 6257 /Passcode: 438222