Bishop DiNardo Scholarships Applications now accepted

By KATIE LEFEBVRE, Globe staff reporter
January 15, 2004

The Bishop Daniel N. DiNardo Scholarship is in its fourth year of providing funding for two students of the Diocese of Sioux City to attend Briar Cliff University.

"Briar Cliff University is the only Catholic college in the diocese," said Royce Ranniger, director of operations for the diocese. "I think as the diocese we need to promote Catholic education. Catholic education means a lot of different things to different people, but it comes back to the foundation of the college, which is Catholicism. They are a liberal arts college, and you can get an accounting degree, which has nothing to do with theology. That's fine but the roots are still based upon Catholicism."

The scholarship targets students with high academic performance, requires an ACT of 24 or higher (equivalent SAT of 1100 or higher) and rank in the top 25 percent of their class. Applicants must belong to a parish within the Diocese of Sioux City. Additional consideration will be given to those students who are endorsed by their local parish priest.

The first scholarships were awarded for the 2000/2001 academic year beginning September 2000. Each year is different but the average applications received has been between 20 and 30.

Sherri Rossiter, the bishop's secretary, updates the scholarship application and sends it out to all of the diocesan Catholic schools and parishes. It may be put in their local school newspapers or bulletins. A letter addressed to students from the bishop is included with the application.

The letter reminds students that the scholarship is available to the students of the Diocese of Sioux City. The scholarship program is to encourage Catholic students in the diocese to continue their Catholic education at Briar Cliff University.

Along with the application, students are required to write a 500-word essay on "Why I want to continue my Catholic education." Students are also offered the option to include a maximum of two letters of reference.

A committee is selected to review the applications and conduct interviews. The committee is made up of one person from the business community and a few school administrators and/or faculty members. They review the applications and narrow them down to four. Then those four students are brought in for interviews. Two of the four are chosen to receive the scholarship.

"As a diocese, we need to promote students within our parishes that want to continue their education," said Ranniger. "The diocese as it is, is one of the most misunderstood entities. When you talk to students, you ask them, 'what do you know about the Diocese of Sioux City,' and they say, 'that's the home of the bishop.' That's kind of where it stops."

Each year Bishop DiNardo scholars presently attending Briar Cliff are invited to attend a luncheon with Bishop DiNardo at the Central Catholic Offices.

"We have an opportunity to discuss with them what we do here. They get to understand who we are. This is an opportunity for us to build more relationships with more people," he said.

The Bishop Daniel N. DiNardo Scholarships are four-year awards if the recipients maintain a 3.25 grade point average while attending Briar Cliff University. Freshmen are awarded $5,000, sophomores $5,500, juniors $6,500 and seniors $8,000.

Ranniger serves as the coordinator, liaison between Briar Cliff and the diocese. "I act as the gatekeeper with Robert Piechota, at Briar Cliff, who is the financial aid director. I make sure the students stay in compliance with the criteria of the scholarship. Every year he will send me a list of students who are currently receiving the scholarship, and he will confirm that they are maintaining the grade point that is required," noted Ranniger.

The scholarship application deadline is March 5. The application form that was sent out must be used to apply. Applications may be returned to Most Rev. Daniel N. DiNardo Scholarship, c/o Central Catholic Offices, 1821 Jackson St., Sioux City, IA 51105.