PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A historic nonprofit and the Community College of Philadelphia are working together to give LGBTQ students a financial boost for higher education.
“We love our community and we want to make sure that all of our community get the opportunities that everyone else has,” says Christopher Cirillo, with the nonprofit Philly AIDS Thrift at Giovanni’s Room.
The goal is to help bridge a gap in resources for LGBTQ students.
“They’re discriminated against — not always just by their peers but also their families — so they don’t always have the opportunities that a lot of other people have,” Cirillo said.
The Ed Hermance Scholarship was established to create opportunities for LGBTQ and under-represented minority students pursuing higher education at the Community College of Philadelphia.
“Last year was our 50th anniversary, and we decided one of the best ways to celebrate was to honor one of the longest-standing managers of Giovanni’s Room itself — that’s Ed Hermance. So they decided to start a scholarship in his name.”
Annually the scholarship fund will offer $1,000 to 50 incoming and current full- and part-time students in good standing at the Community College of Philadelphia, Cirillo said. Applications for the scholarship are being accepted now. The deadline is June 30.
Philly AIDS Thrift at Giovanni’s Room supports organizations fighting against HIV and AIDS. Giovanni’s Room is the oldest LGBTQ and feminist bookstore in the country.