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$32.5K grant will help dozens of SC students keep merit scholarships at Francis Marion.FLORENCE — The Francis Marion University Education Foundation has been awarded a multi-thousand dollar grant from a nonprofit to help students with financial needs in the university’s summer program.The $32,500 grant from Power:Ed, the philanthropy of SC Student Loan Corporation, will support the expansion of the university’s Summer Success program to help approximately 35 students from South Carolina retain their merit scholarships.The funding will cover up to four credit hours of summer tuition and fees for students with high financial need who must take summer courses to meet state merit scholarship requirements.This initiative, initially created to support freshman students struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, has a broad impact on low-income, underrepresented and first generation students, according to a press release.Power:Ed funding will allow Francis Marion to expand student eligibility and continue providing this program to South Carolina students, many of whom are from the Pee Dee region and rely on state scholarships to fund their education, the release said.State merit scholarships require first-year students to earn 30 credits and a 3.0 LIFE GPA before the next academic year.Students who struggle academically or must withdraw from a course often find it difficult to meet those requirements during the regular academic year.As a result, summer coursework becomes necessary to maintain scholarship eligibility.However, many students find the cost of summer courses to be restrictive.Students who lose their state-merit scholarship are consequently at the greatest risk of discontinuing their college education.“We are grateful to Power:Ed for investing in the success of our students,” University President Fred Carter said in the release.“This support helps remove financial barriers for students working to retain their scholarships and continue pursuing their educational goals.” With the help of federal funding from 2022-2024, Francis Marion’s pilot project showed success, and the university expanded upon that success with the aid of a Power:Ed grant in 2025, according to the release.Approximately 77 percent of students assisted through this program have kept their scholarships, helping many first-generation students from high-need backgrounds continue their university education.“Power:Ed and SC Student Loan are proud to support this incredible program from Francis Marion for a second summer, to help more students retain their merit scholarships and persist to graduation,” Power:Ed Executive Director Claire Gibbons said in the release.“We hope it will become a model that can be replicated by higher education institutions across South Carolina.” In fiscal year 2025-26 Power:Ed has awarded $1,325,000 in grants to South Carolina education and career readiness organizations including this FMUEF grant.Grants are administered quarterly, and the next grant funding deadline is July 1, 2026.