Bursaries for Form I Entrants to Dollar in 2008-2009

Dollar Academy, since its foundation in 1818, has always aimed to be an inclusive community – and every child who enters its doors is equally valued.  As a result of this philosophy, Dollar, unlike other schools which may choose to offer scholarships, does not opt for fee-discounting either according to perceived achievement or hoped-for potential.  Instead, the skills and abilities of all who are admitted are seen as the bedrock on which to build.  While there naturally are high-flyers in many areas, their achievements are not automatically and publicly valued more highly than those who are achieving at their own levels. 

On the Academy’s bronze doors, which were created in 1931, the encouragement to all pupils entering John McNabb’s school is offered – namely that they should apply themselves “diligently to learning and strenuously to games”.  Everyone who enters through the doors of Dollar Academy is thus perceived as having equal potential to fulfil his or her promise at the appropriate level. 

Parents enquiring about scholarships learn that all children in Dollar Academy are charged the same fee according to their age group, and that discounting through scholarships does not have any place here.  Nevertheless, should a child be likely to benefit in a particular way from attending Dollar Academy, and the fees be beyond the family’s means, bursary support might be available.  It is also stressed that the general level of fees is thus set at the lowest possible level in order to encourage a wide entry, and that, while worthwhile applicants may be eligible for bursaries, parents are not directly supporting other children whose level of talents might simply be perceived as being more valued than the talents of their own children.  

The Academy’s approach is transparent and approved of by the many parents who then choose to send their children here; the level of achievement of a wide cross-section of young people entering Dollar reflects the commitment to and the wisdom of this welcoming, positive strategy. 

Bursaries – Practical Details
Since the creation of The 1802 Foundation, the Governors of Dollar Academy have been aiming to build up sufficient funds to support a wider provision of bursaries than has been possible in the recent past.  As The 1802 Foundation develops, it is hoped that further bursary awards will become possible in the future.  The Dollar Academy Club Educational Trust (DACET) in addition has taken the decision to shift its disposition of funds raised to bursary provision.  Applicants sitting the entrance test in January 2008 will thus have the opportunity to apply for bursary support, and the Governors have stipulated that 3 awards may be made to candidates who satisfy the requirements both in terms of the quality of their application and in terms of clear financial need.  They have further stipulated that these awards will be made only to candidates whose family income is at a level to justify the award of 100% bursaries, namely, with a total household income of less than £29,000 per annum.  Additional support may be available to assist with uniform costs, school meals and school activities, though not for travel costs to and from the Academy.

In all cases, the amount of any bursary will be determined by the extent of financial need and therefore the parents of applicants for bursaries are required to complete an application form, which provides details of their income and of their capital assets. Other factors taken into account will be the academic potential of the child, and the number of other dependent children. Where there is no clear financial need, no bursary will be granted.

The School currently has limited resources from which it can offer bursaries, although measures are in hand to increase this provision.   There are details provided below about another particular area of support, namely boarding bursaries, where we hope that future funding developments will play a significant part. 

The usual point at which bursaries are awarded is at entry to Form 1 in the Senior School, and in such cases the award will normally continue through to the completion of the recipient’s education at the Academy, if the financial case continues to warrant such support. Any award that may be made will be subject to annual review to ensure that the family’s financial circumstances have not improved sufficiently to reduce or remove the need for a bursary.  Only in extraordinary circumstances will the award of a bursary be considered in the Prep and Junior School.

A limited number of awards may in future be granted at other stages of the Senior School, but these will be determined by the availability of bursary funds at the time. Most of these awards are likely to be made to assist existing pupils where there has been a change in financial circumstances which might jeopardise a child’s continuing attendance at the Academy. Only the most extreme cases are likely to receive support, if indeed sufficient funds are available. Awards are thus available both to existing pupils and to new applicants. Parents of existing pupils should remain aware of the requirement to give one term’s notice of withdrawal. Failure to do so may result in liability for one term’s fees in lieu of notice.

Applications
Where a child is not currently attending the Academy, an application to the Rector for a place must be made as the first step. When making an application for a place, parents are invited to contact the Bursar or his PA should they wish their child to be considered for a bursary award in addition. They will then be sent a bursary application form which should be completed and returned to the Bursar if and when an offer of a place is made.

The bursary application form requires details of the family income, capital assets and regular commitments such as mortgage payments and so on. Unearned income must also be shown. Details of other children in the family are required, as is information about their current status – whether, for example, they are attending school or a place of further education, or in work. This is intended to provide a clear picture of the family’s position in order to allow the Governors to make a fair assessment. This declaration of income is to be signed in the presence of a Notary Public. In this context the terms ‘parent/s’ and ‘family’ will be taken to mean those adults ordinarily understood to be resident together, or the single adult, with whom the child or children reside.  Declarations of income will need to identify income arising from divorce arrangements, other adults who assist with payments to that household, income from third parties etc.

Parents may apply for a place at the school for their child on the basis that acceptance of a place will be conditional upon receiving bursary support.

Following receipt by the Rector of a completed Application for Enrolment form, children applying for entry to Form 1 are required to sit the entrance test, held on the last Saturday in January each year. Performance in the exam is used to determine the academic potential of the child. All applicants for Form 1 entry will be assessed together, and placed in rank order, without the academic assessors having information about expressions of interest in bursaries. If, following the entrance test, an offer of a place is made by the Academy, bursary application forms should be completed, signed in the presence of, and authorised as required by a Notary Public, and sent to the Bursar with the specified supporting evidence, to arrive no later than 5.00pm on Friday 29th February 2008. Subject to performance in the entrance test, up to three 100% bursary awards will be made in each intake to the top performing applicants eligible for bursary support. The confidentiality of this procedure will be maintained by the Academy. Unsuccessful applications will usually be the result of either lack of evidence of financial need, or insufficient availability of bursary funds.   From the information available, the Bursar and Rector make their recommendations to the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors, which makes the final decision. There will be no course of appeal following the Executive Committee’s decision. The financial declarations of unsuccessful candidates will be destroyed once all available bursary places have been awarded and accepted.  Usually, applicants will be informed of the outcome of bursary applications by the end of March, or shortly thereafter.

Pupils joining at other stages may be considered in the light of academic reports available to the School and the results of an interview.

Boarding Bursaries
In the case of boarding pupils, similar bursary provision will be possible for Form I; except in this case the bursary will attach to the boarding fee rather than to the tuition element.  It is unlikely that the award will be for more than 50% of the boarding fee, but each case will be individually assessed.  These bursaries may be offered to new and existing pupils on the basis of financial need.  Applications should be made in writing to the Rector in the first instance, who will then, if appropriate, ask that the forms be processed by the Bursar’s Office.  

Timetable
In the case of all Form I Bursaries, the Executive Committee meets in late March to consider the anonymous recommendations presented by the Rector and Bursar and seeks to notify parents shortly thereafter. The parents should then advise the school if they wish to take up the place and bursary within two weeks of receiving the offer, failing which the offer may be transferred to another pupil.

Length of Award
Bursaries are normally awarded on the basis that assistance will be required for as long as the child remains at Dollar Academy. Some awards, however, may be granted for one year and then be subject to review. This often applies where a family has experienced a temporary change in its financial circumstances.

In all cases, awards are conditional upon the pupil making reasonable academic progress and maintaining good standards of behaviour.  They may be withdrawn in the event of repeated breach of school rules or serious misconduct.

Where the financial position of the family changes, the school expects the Bursar to be notified and this may lead to a review of the amount of the bursary being granted. From time to time parents of children receiving bursaries will be requested to complete a Statement of Financial Circumstances to ensure there has been no significant change in their financial position.

The bursary will be deducted from the tuition fees and will be shown on the fee note sent out by the Bursar. No payment is made to the parent.  Any further enquiries on this subject should be addressed to the Bursar.

Other Sources of Bursary Assistance
There are a number of educational and charitable trusts which provide assistance with tuition fees. In the majority of cases these are to assist children who are already attending a school which charges fees and as a result of a change in financial circumstances may be unable to remain there. Furthermore such trusts tend to be reluctant to commit funds for more than one or two years and therefore will be unlikely to consider pupils in Junior School or at the lower end of the Senior School. Nevertheless the Academy encourages parents to apply for support where it is felt a good case can be made for assistance. Most trusts will contact the Academy to seek information regarding the pupil’s conduct and general performance. Further information on how to pursue such assistance may be obtained from:

The Bursar
The Governors of Dollar Academy Trust
23 West Burnside
Dollar 
FK14 7DX

Scottish Council of Independent Schools,
21 Melville Street
Edinburgh
EH3 7PE

The Joint Educational Trust
6 Lovat Lane
London
EC3R 8DT

Other Awards
Dollar Academy, in similar style to many other schools, has a number of prizes and awards which have been made available through the generosity of former pupils, parents, governors, rectors and members of staff.  In general, the sums of money attached to these prizes and awards, which are listed on the website after Prizegiving, are not particularly substantial, but of considerable sentimental value.  There are, however, some awards which are more substantial, and reflect the wishes of benefactors.  There are for instance awards made which involve the reduction of £500 per annum from school fees for those members of Form V in Dollar Academy who enter Form VI with five A band 1 passes at Higher; this award has been in force for many years, and is designed to encourage strenuous academic endeavour amongst the top academic pupils in the Academy.  There are two major travel awards which are designed to encourage humanitarian ventures, and awards for literary study in areas far away from the Academy.  In these cases, the financial circumstances of the applicants are taken into consideration by the awarding committee at the time of decision.  The travel scholarships are openly advertised throughout the school community, and are available to pupils about to leave in the former instance, and about to enter Form VI in the latter.

The generosity of former pupils in relation to the prize fund endowment is now being channelled more directly towards The 1802 Foundation, in order to encourage even wider applications to the Academy. 

The Cameron Travel Scholarship Trust
The Chairman of Governors, Mr John Cameron and his wife Margaret have set up a trust of over £1 million which aims to support pupils from Dollar Academy as well as agricultural students who wish to widen their experience by travelling abroad to learn and explore. Further details are available from the Dollar Academy website.

The Harry Bell Scholarship
Only one scholarship is offered in Dollar Academy, and this has a particularly significant historic connection.  The founder of the school had links with the West Indies, and it is through the generosity of the family of a former Rector (from 1936 to 1960), Mr Harry Bell, whose son lives in Barbados, that these links are maintained.  During the past decade, a means-tested award has been made to a scholar from Barbados, who has the opportunity to spend a year in the Academy prior to university entry.  There is a selection process which takes place in Barbados, and the Harry Bell scholar is provided with full board and tuition as a result of what is viewed as a most prestigious scholarship both in Barbados and here in Scotland.  It is particularly fitting that this award is the only official scholarship provided in Dollar Academy – and we have been particularly impressed by the level of commitment and attainment shown by the holders of this scholarship, who are now graduating from their selected universities. 

As will be widely known, Dollar Academy has a long-established reputation as a school which raises significant sums for charitable purposes, locally, nationally and internationally.  In 2007 alone, as a result of a Sponsored Cross Country Competition and a Sponsored Walk, almost £70,000 was raised for causes as diverse as Rachel House (CHAS), Sightsavers International (Pakistan), Nutrir, Depression Alliance, The Beatson, and various organisations supporting stroke victims.  There is no direct fund-raising for the Academy itself:  the 1802 Foundation exists through the generosity of Former Pupils, Parents, Governors and Staff whose commitment to the educational aims of the Academy finds a direct expression in provision for the widest access.

Conclusion
As will be noted from the above, the Governors of Dollar Academy are keen to widen participation and access to Dollar Academy in order to encourage as many young people as possible to be part of the excellent educational environment available here.  The work being undertaken by The 1802 Foundation has provided a springboard for future action and it is our hope that, at some point during the next twenty years, all applications to Dollar Academy can be on a “needs blind basis”.  Were that to come about, the aims of the founder would be fulfilled, despite the challenging financial voyage the Academy has undertaken during the past two hundred years. 

December 2007