Rossmoor Scholarships for High Schools/RWC 2026

The Rossmoor Scholarship Foundation (RSF) is a volunteer organization of residents of Rossmoor, a senior community in Walnut Creek, California. Each year the foundation awards scholarships to help outstanding local students continue their education.

The scholarships are funded primarily by donations from individuals, clubs, and organizations within the Rossmoor community. Rossmoor Scholarships are for $4,000 each. Students are granted only one lifetime Rossmoor Scholarship. If you are awarded a Rossmoor Scholarship as a graduating high school senior, you may not apply again.

To be eligible to receive a scholarship:

• You must be able to fill out either a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or a California Dream Act Application (CADAA).

• You must be a graduating senior from Antioch, Concord, Deer Valley, Mt. Diablo, Pittsburg or Ygnacio Valley high school.  After graduation, you must be planning to attend a federally accredited community college, college, university, or vocational training school.

  If you are a RWC (Rossmoor Walnut Creek) employee or a child of a RWC employee, see below for specific qualifications. RWC employees or their children are not required to have attended or graduated from the high schools listed above.

To apply:

• You must have a weighted GPA of 3.00 or higher.

• Your Student Aid Index (SAI) on the FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) or CADAA Summary must be no more than 32000.

• You must fill out the application form completely and submit it by the due date.

• You (and a parent or guardian if you are under 18 years of age and not legally emancipated) must complete the permission form.

• You will be asked to upload a photograph (head and shoulders) of yourself. The photo cannot be done by a professional studio and should be of good quality - at least 2 MB if possible.

• You will be asked to upload the Overview Eligibility of the FSS which contains your SAI score or the summary from the CADAA.

• You will be asked to upload your most recent transcript from the school registrar.

• You must provide an essay of not more than 600 words and it should be written in your own words - text written by others can be included in an essay only if it is shown with quotation marks and if the source of the text is identified. Violation of this requirement may result in disqualification for a scholarship.

• You must request (AND have submitted) at least one letter of recommendation from an academic teacher.

• You may request optional letters of recommendation from other teachers, an employer, a coach, a mentor, or the head of an organization for which you have volunteered.

All of these steps are explained in more detail in the application form.

For RWC employees or child of RWC employee:

• You must be a Rossmoor Walnut Creek (RWC) employee, who is a high school graduate and who has not attended an advanced education institution. You are eligible if you have worked for RWC for at least one year prior to the application process and continue to be employed until the scholarship payment has been received by the award recipient. Seasonal or part-time workers must have begun work by April 1, 2024 and have worked at least 1,040 hours in 2024 prior to submission of the application and continue to be employed until the scholarship payment has been received by the award recipient. In order to receive the scholarship payment, you must be enrolled in at least 6 units of classes in a federally accredited community college, college, university, or a vocational training school.

  OR

  You must be a child of a Rossmoor Walnut Creek (RWC) employee and the employee meets the RWC employee eligibility criteria described above. You are a graduating high school senior or a high school graduate who has not attended an advanced education institution. In order to receive the scholarship payment, you must be enrolled in at least 12 units of classes in a federally accredited community college, college, university, or vocational training school.

Optional Additional Scholarships

You may also apply for one or more additional scholarships. These are explained near the end of the application. An essay is required for each additional scholarship for which you apply, and you must apply at the time you fill out this application. Only students who are awarded a Rossmoor Scholarship will be considered for the additional scholarships.

Interview and Awards Ceremony

Students who apply and meet all the criteria above will be interviewed by a team of RSF trustees in late January to early February. Students will then be selected based on their GPA, SAI, essay, application information, and interview. An Awards Ceremony is held in early May.

To receive your scholarship payment, you will need to submit proof of enrollment in the minimum number of units at a federally accredited community college, college, university or a vocational training school indicated below. 

• 12 units for high school graduating senior applicants

• 12 units for children of RWC employee applicants

• 6 units for RWC employee applicants

The Rossmoor Scholarship Foundation will send you the verification form.