To assist financially those migrant farmworker youth who have the potential and desire to further their education to achieve their personal and career goals

• Recent history of movement for agricultural employment - priority will be given to currently interstate migrant youth
• Scholastic potential
• Financial need
• Enrolled in or accepted at an accredited public or private college, technical or vocational school, or a dropout or a potential dropout from high school who shows promise of ability to continue schooling

• freshman
• sophomore
• junior
• senior

A completed online application must be accompanied by:

• a letter of recommendation from a school, community or educational agency representative with a personal knowledge of the applicant's character, educational commitment, and financial need;

• applicant’s personal essay telling about his/her background, career and personal goals, and indicating why he/she should receive this assistance;

• proof that the student has been admitted to the school chosen;

• a copy of the applicant’s current or most recent Migrant Education Program Certificate of Eligibility (COE).

The application deadline is April 1st of each year and must be postmarked by that date.

Submit application along with all supporting documents to:

Gloria Mattera National Migrant Scholarship Fund

Geneseo Migrant Center

3 Mt. Morris - Leicester Road

Leicester, NY 14481

The Gloria Mattera National Migrant Scholarship Fund was founded in 1974 to honor Joseph Mattera, the father of the founder of the Geneseo Migrant Center. The name was changed to include Gloria Mattera upon her death in 1988.

Dr. Gloria Mattera, founder of the Geneseo Migrant Center, was born in Rochester, NY on April 16, 1930. She received her bachelor's and master's degrees from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Brockport and her doctorate in education from the Pennsylvania State University. As a member of the SUNY Geneseo Education Department faculty, Dr. Mattera developed and led a summer program for teachers of the children of migrant farmworkers. She recognized the need for services for migrant children, and in 1968 founded the Center. It soon expanded to include day care programs for infants and preschoolers, and adult education and recreation, as these needs became apparent.

Recognized for her work on behalf of farmworkers at the local, state, and national levels by her peers, the leading providers of migrant education and other services, Dr. Mattera received numerous awards throughout her career. MEMO, a periodic publication for the national Migrant Education Program, featured her in its April 1987 issue as a "Founding Mother" of migrant education. She was known to farmworkers all along the East coast as "Doc Mattera." The Center she founded continues today to provide programs guided by her philosophy of respect and support for the workers.

For additional information on the Fund, please write or call:

Gloria Mattera National Migrant Scholarship Fund
Geneseo Migrant Center
3 Mt. Morris-Leicester Road
Leicester, NY 14481
Toll Free: (800) 245-5681