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After the college fairs, career days, and counselor orientations, parents and students can be overwhelmed
with what to do, where to start, and how to prepare their child for college. Tom has developed a user-friendly
resource to assist parents and their college bound children. His book, College Scholarships Search Guide
provides an excellent supplement to school presentations and is especially useful to first generation
students and families.
Patricia Young, Ed.D., N.C.C., College Counselor - Tempe, Arizona.
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Tom Sutton's 'College Scholarship Search Guide' has been an invaluable reference source in my search
for financial aid for my children. It has provided a sound framework to effectively organize the complex
scholarship application process and has saved me hours in this endeavor.
Dan Bryce - Tempe, Arizona.
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The College Scholarship Search Guide created and designed by Tom Sutton is a comprehensive tool that any
student, who will be attending college in the near future, and his/her parent, should avail themselves of.
I wish that when my son was nearing college age, a program such as this had been available. It would have
saved me countless hours of research and frustration in finding out what I should do and where I should start.
Tom's provided all the information needed. The Guide is a must! Anne More, Needles, California.
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Having known Tom Sutton for many years, I had an idea that he was a very thorough researcher. We
spoke on several occasions on how hard he worked at trimming down his notes for his October 30
presentation. The amount of information presented in the limited amount of time was unbelievable.
It is clear that he has spent endless hours researching a subject few would attempt, especially for
the many smaller size grants and scholarships available to all. Even those who may feel they would
not be qualified due to financial and/or academic status. His information is invaluable.
Gregg Creaser, P.E., Tempe, Arizona.
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Attention to detail and organization are superb in this program. A must for anyone with children.
Tom Oliver, Tempe, Arizona.
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I enjoyed your Workshop Presentation on Saturday and the Information provided. It was well organized
and easy to follow. Thanks for devoting your time and sharing this information. Dave Anderson, Tempe, Arizona.
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I have found Tom Sutton to be to be knowledgeable and professional. A pleasure working with him.
Doug Domke. Tempe, Arizona. | |
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Taking the mystery out of searching for College Scholarships by Matthew Garcia Wrangler News Kyrene
Corridor October 9-23, 2004. The years leading to Mark Sutton's senior year in High School at Corona
Del Sol, Mark and his dad Tom had discussed future College possibilities--a little. "Like many parents
we thought about College, but never did anything,"Tom Sutton said. When Mark finally reached his senior
year, Tom studied University Costs and did something that many unprepared parents do--he paniced. While
Mark had a good Academic Standing, he wasn't necessarily at the top of his Graduating Class. The Sutton's
didn't know what kinds of Scholarship options were available to soften the financial blow from College Tuition.
"I didn't know what to do, I didn't know where to start,"Tom said. As the realities of costs sunk in, he
decided the only way to approach the task was as a Team. "I made a partnership with Mark. He would focus on
grades and I would hit the Internet looking for Scholarships."The deal was that Tom would find the Scholarship
Applications and Mark would complete them. Tom, who spent hundreds of hours hunting various Websites and
Databases, was surprised to find dozens and dozens of Scholarship Opportunities. "There is literary Billions
of Dollars of free money out there,"Tom said. Sutton started his search in October, and by the time Mark was
headed to Tucson for his freshman year at the University of Arizona, he had been awarded three Scholarships
that covered almost half of his first year of school. Scholarships "When I say there are Billions of Dollars
I mean it," Sutton said. Sutton found that there a few different types of Scholarships offering money,
and it's important for students and parents to become familiar with them. There are Financial Need-Based
Scholarships--such as Federal Grant Money. There are University Scholarships and Private Merit-Based Scholarships.
"Since my wife (and I) both worked, the Private Scholarships were our best option,"Tom said. The Private
Scholarships cover many different needs, from Scholarships for students with diabetes, to Scholarships for
tall students. "There is a Scholarship for almost everything," Tom said. Scotch, the makers of Duct Tape, even
offers a Scholarship for the Student who designs the best Prom Outfit out of their product, Tom said. While he
said most Scholarships are for high school seniors, once a student reaches the university level, the Scholarship
Search starts all over again, as there are a ton of Scholarships awarded to College Students and to students
interested in Graduate School. Spreading the knowledge Tom found that the information he gathered from his
Scholarship endeavors was not widely known to parents facing their children's College years. Tom compiled his
notes and started writing them down. Before he knew it, he had dozens of pages written in what would become his
172-page book, College Scholarships Search Guide. "I guarantee that most people do not know where to start.
"As an outcome of the work Tom and Mark undertook, Tom has started his own Scholarship Consultation Business to
inform families on steps that can ensure the best odds of receiving Scholarship Money. On Saturday, Oct. 30, in
conjunction with the Corona del Sol PTO, Sutton hosted a Forum on Scholarship Finding Strategies. The Workshop
guided parents and their children through the steps toward finding Scholarships, as well as Organizational Tools
to understanding what the Scholarships mean. All the proceeds from the workshop will be put toward a Senior
Scholarship. Start young Tom Sutton stresses that an early start is the most effective way to plan for your child's
education. "The ideal time to begin planning is when your child is born, but of course that's not realistic for
everybody, "he said. Tom says that when he found out the right path, he immediately put his daughter on the Program.
"She been on my program for years,"he said, "It's going to be interesting to see how it works for her when she is a senior. "Tom has encouraged his daughter to participate in as many activities as possible, he says, because
Scholarship Boards look highly toward students who volunteer and who are involved in Extracurricular Activities.
Matt Garcia, reporter for Wrangler News. 9-23-2004.
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