Scholarships - GraffitiPad

PRWEB, January 11, 2007 — GraffitiPad.com is selling advertising spots to fund a new program for college scholarships. According to the press release the site will sell “pixels” on their web site for $.49 cents each to fund the scholarship awards. Rainier Trinidad, the project’s creator, launched the funding program to expand the exposure his past philanthropic efforts have had. According to Trinidad, the Internet will help generate enough funding to finance 60 - $1000 scholarships per month, over a five year period.

Rising tuition costs combined with a reduction in grants and other funding have left many college students gasping for funding. Tuition in the U.S. has increased nearly three fold in the last 30 years. Trinidad has guaranteed funding for 2 -$1000 scholarships for the March and June quarters. The site has already sold over 2100 pixels of advertising! The scholarships will be merit based, but will ultimately be given to recipients who can attract the attention of voters on the web.  

The criteria for eligibility are as follows:

1. Minimum 3.0 GPA
2. Enrolled in post secondary education (college or graduate)
3. United States residence with U.S. mailing address
4. At least 18 years of age

Trinidad said that making money off the site is a secondary concern, and that funding the 60 scholarships is the primary focus. The GraffitiPad owner said: “Until the first goal of funding 60 scholarships is met, I won’t earn a single dime from this venture.”

Applicants will also be required to supply documentation to support their applications. Transcripts, tuition expenses, room and board expenses, and a short statement of personal information will be required in order to qualify. The initial scholarships will only be awarded once per quarter until sufficient funding is available for the monthly expenditure.  

The take!

I am very much for philanthropy, and especially for people trying to better themselves. Sites like this are a little hard to evaluate, as the information available is pretty limited. I have a tendency to be skeptical about the motives of any marketing machination, and I always like being proven wrong. On the face of it, this looks like a very good deal for some deserving college students, and I hope it goes well!

The site does have several disclaimers in regard to no funding being available, and etc. There is no exact statement of the proportion of collected funds to be distributed to the selected students. The number of pixels available at the onset was 350,000, so we can do the math on that. Does the site owner intend to distribute the initial $60,000 after $100,000 in revenue, $200,000? How many scholarships will be funded and when is my big question? The problem with asking people to give is that so many have given only to see their money wasted.

Ultimately, I don’t care if the guy makes $50 million, if at least 70% of that sum is donated to the students. Disclosure is what brings credibility to any endeavor. Mr. Trinidad would be better served making a more specific statement on the subject. Affiliations with watchdog associations like Give.org can add validity, and I think these affiliations would better serve us all. I have written the site owner to that effect, and hope to be able to report great things about its progress.