Woodward Hines foundation gives $800,000 to restore FAITH scholarships

The Woodward Hines Education Foundation will provide $800,000 to cover FAITH scholarships for former foster youths attending colleges in Mississippi, foundation President and CEO Jim McHale said at a news conference Wednesday in Jackson.

The gift follows a notification last week from the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid that the scholarships would not be funded for 2026-27, the office said, and will cover awards for about 170 students, officials said.

Sen. Nicole Boyd, R-Oxford, said the foundation stepped up in response to the funding gap. “We are going to make sure that every one of these students has the opportunity to take advantage of the scholarship,” Boyd said at the news conference, according to a news release.

The Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid had requested $6.5 million to cover the FAITH scholarships and the Winter-Reed Teacher Loan Repayment Program, the office said, but the Legislature approved less than half that amount. The office applied the money it received to the FAITH awards, officials said, but the shortfall meant the loan repayment program will not award money this year for the first time since it was created in 2021.

Mississippi financial aid officials said the $7.3 million budget shortfall could reduce state aid for nearly 27,000 college students. The Woodward Hines gift is a one-time boost, McHale said, and future funding for the scholarships is uncertain. The foundation plans to publish information Friday on its website for those who want to donate, officials said. Rep. Bill Kinkade, R-Byhalia, who helped create the scholarship in 2022, said he will work with other legislators before January to address anticipated shortfalls. “We need to continue funding it because it is vital,” Kinkade said, according to the news release.

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