General Info

The Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund ( APIASF ) is the nation's largest 501 ( c ) 3 non-profit organization that provides scholarships to Asian and Pacific Islander Americans ( APIAs ) with financial need. Based in Washington, D.C., APIASF was formed in 2003. 2003.While national scholarship organizations for Latinos and African Americans have existed for more than 30 and 60 years respectively, there was not a comparable organization for APIAs until APIASF's formation.In addition, 13 percent of Asian Americans and 17 percent of Pacific Islanders live in poverty compared to 12 percent of the general population, with several Asian American ethnic groups having poverty rates significantly higher than many other ethnic groups in the United States.Studies show that APIA students may be marginalized and overlooked in leadership development programs on college campuses ; in addition, they may not readily relate to or embrace the label of "leader" relative to their White peers.Based on these and other statistics, APIASF endeavors to provide scholarships to APIA students in our community who: