None of the online scholarship databases includes information about college scholarships that are available only to children under age 13 because of federal privacy laws. The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA), 15 USC 6501, and the Children's Privacy Protection Final Rule, require web sites to obtain "verifiable parental consent" before collecting, using or disclosing individually identifiable information from children under age 13. This effectively prevents online scholarship databases from matching students under age 13 with college scholarships. Because of the difficulties in obtaining consent, all of the scholarship databases avoid the problem by omitting scholarships for underage children from their databases and refusing to register users under age 13.

Unfortunately, this makes it difficult for parents of younger students to find information about scholarships available to students under age 13. Early awareness programs try to encourage families to start searching for scholarships and saving for college early, yet are unable to help them find the scholarships. (Some early awareness programs such as GEAR UP offer their own college scholarships to encourage participation.)

Because FinAid does not require registration and does not collect personally identifiable information from children under age 13, we are able to include a comprehensive list of awards available to students under age 13 and in grades 8 and below. This list is directed at parents of younger students, and is intended to emphasize that students of all ages can pursue scholarships. This list is devoted to college scholarships that can be won by elementary and middle school students.

Some of the scholarships listed below are also available to students over age 13. To find additional scholarships for students who are over age 13, see the FastWeb scholarship database.

Scholarships for Children Who Are Under Age 13

Action For Nature Eco-Hero Award
Action for Nature sponsors the International Young Eco-Hero Awards to recognize youth aged 8 to 16 who have completed environmental projects focused on environmental advocacy, environmental health, research or protection of the natural world. Cash prizes of up to $500 will be awarded. The deadline is February 28. For more information, call 1-415-421-2640, fax 1-415-922-5717, write to Action For Nature, 2269 Chestnut Street, #263, San Francisco, CA 94123, or send email to awards@actionfornature.org.

AngelSoft Angels in Action
The Angels in Action awards recognizes ten children aged 8-15 who perform acts of kindness and volunteerism in their communities. The grand prize winner receives $20,000 and the ten first prize winners receive $2,500. Each winner also receives a one-year supply of Angel Soft bath tissue. The deadline is in mid-June.

BattleBots IQ
BattleBots IQ is a robot-building contest for teams of middle and high school students and college students. See the rules for more information, or send email to info@battlebots.com.

The BRICK Awards
The BRICK Awards by Do Something provide a $5,000 scholarship and a $5,000 grant to "change-makers" age 18 and under who work with Do Something to improve their communities. A $10,000 grant is available to those aged 19-25. The competition is open to Americans and Canadians. Of the twelve BRICK Award recipients, four will be selected as Golden BRICK winners and receive an additional $15,000. The deadline is December 1. For more information, send email to brick@dosomething.org.

Christopher Columbus Community Service Awards
The Christopher Columbus Community Service Awards are open to teams of students in grades 6-8. The competition focuses on using science and technology to solve real-world community problems. Each member of the winning teams receives a $2,000 US Savings Bond. Winners also receive a trip to the National Championship Week at Walt Disney World. The competition is sponsored by the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation in cooperation with the National Science Foundation. The deadline is the second Monday in February. For more information, call 1-800-291-6020, write to Christopher Columbus Awards, 105 Terry Drive, Suite 120, Newtown, PA 18940-3425, or send email to success@edumedia.com.

Courage in Student Journalism Awards
The Courage in Student Journalism Awards are sponsored by the Newseum, the Student Press Law Center, and the National Scholastic Press Association. A $5,000 award is granted each year to a middle or high school journalist who lawfully exercised his or her First Amendment press rights despite difficulty or resistance. The deadline is July 1 (postmark). For more information, call 1-703-284-3775, fax 1-703-284-3535, write to Barbara McCormack, NEWSEUM, 1101 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, VA 22209 or send email to bmccormack@freedomforum.org.

Craftsman/NSTA Young Inventors Awards Program
The Craftsman/NSTA Young Inventors Awards Program is open to US students in grades 2-8 who use creativity and imagination along with science, technology and mechanical ability to invent or modify a tool. The program is sponsored by Craftsman and the National Science Teachers Association. There are two grade categories: grades 2-5 and grades 6-8. Within each grade category there is one national winner of a $10,000 US Savings Bond, five finalist winners of a $500 US Savings Bond, and six third-place regional winners of a $250 US Savings Bond. The deadline is March 15. For more information, call 1-888-494-4994, write to Craftsman/NSTA Young Inventors Awards Program, 1840 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201-3000, or send email to younginventors@nsta.org.

Davidson Fellows
Davidson Fellowships are awarded by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development to US students under age 18 who have completed a significant piece of work in the fields of Mathematics, Science, Technology, Music, Literature, Philosophy or Outside the Box. The significant piece of work should have the potential to benefit society. The focus of the program is on gifted and talented students. There is no minimum age for eligibility. Four $50,000 scholarships, seven $25,000 scholarships, and five $10,000 scholarships are awarded each year. The deadline is March 31 (receipt); there are earlier deadlines for some forms. For more information, write to The Davidson Institute for Talent Development, Attn: Davidson Fellows Coordinators, 9665 Gateway Drive, Suite B, Reno, NV 89521 or send email to davidsonfellows@ditd.org.

Dick Blick Linoleum Block Print Contest
Dick Blick sponsors an annual contest for block prints made from linoleum. There are three divisions: grades 4-6, grades 7-9, and grades 10-12. Within each division there is one first prize of $400, one second prize of $250, one third prize of $150, and two honorable mentions of $50. The prizes are in the form of art materials chosen by the winner's teacher from Dick Blick's catalog for use in the winner's art class. The deadline is March 15. For more information, call 1-800-828-4548, fax 1-800-621-8293, write to Artsonia, ATTN: Linoleum Contest, 3166 North Lincoln Avenue, Suite 416, Chicago, IL 60657, or send email to info@dickblick.com.

DuPont Challenge Science Essay Competition
The DuPont Challenge Science Essay Competition is sponsored by the DuPont Center for Collaborative Research & Education in cooperation with General Learning Communications. The competition is open to US and Canadian students in grades 7-12 inclusive. The competition involves writing a 700 to 1,000 word essay about a scientific or technological development, event, or theory chosen by the student. Topic areas include chemical sciences, life sciences, physical sciences, earth sciences, environmental sciences and space technology. There are two divisions: grades 7-9 and grades 10-12. Within each division there is one first place prize of $1,500, four finalist prizes of $500 each, and 30 honorable mention prizes of $50. The first place winners also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Space Center Houston with a parent and the sponsoring Science and English teachers. The deadline is in mid-January. For more information, call 1-847-205-3000 or write to The DuPont Challenge, Science Essay Awards Program, c/o General Learning Communications, 900 Skokie Blvd., Suite 200, Northbrook, IL 60062-4028.

Girls Going Places Entrepreneurship Award Program
The Girls Going Places Entrepreneurship Award Program is open to girls age 12 to 18 who demonstrate entrepreneurship and make a difference in their schools and communities. The first prize winner receives is $10,000, the second prize winner receives $5,000, the third prize winner receives $3,000, and the 12 finalists receive $1,000 each. The award program is sponsored by Guardian Life Insurance Company of America. The deadline (receipt) is March 1.

Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes
The Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes is awarded annually to ten US and Canadian students, aged 8-18, who have developed an extraordinary service project that helped people and the planet. Half of the winners are focused on helping their communities and people, and half are focused on protecting the environment. Winners receive a $2,000 scholarship. For more information, write to The Barron Prize, PO Box 17, Boulder, CO 80306-0017.

Jif Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich Contest ()
The Jif Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich Contest is open to children who are age 6 to 12. The grand prize is a $25,000 scholarship fund. The four runners up receive a $2,500 scholarship fund. The deadline is mid-November. The contest is sponsored by the J.M. Smucker Company.

Kohl's Kids Who Care Program
The Kohl's Kids Who Care Program (www.kohlskids.com) honors students age 6-18 who are involved in community service. Candidates enter by being nominated by an adult age 21 years or older. Nominees are considered in two age groups, 6-12 and 13-18, with three prize levels within each group. More than 2,000 children will receive a total of more than $350,000 in scholarships and prizes. More than 2,000 store winners each receive a $50 Kohl's gift card, 194 regional winners each receive a $1,000 scholarship, and 10 national winners each receive a $5,000 scholarship. The deadline is March 15.

Letters About Literature
Letters About Literature is a national reading/writing contest sponsored by the Center for the Book in the US Library of Congress in partnership with Target Stores. The contest is open to US students in grades 4-12. Entries consist of a personal letter to an author, living or dead, from any genre, explaining how the author's work changed the student's way of thinking about the world or themselves. There are three competition levels: grades 4-6 (100-250 words), grades 7-8 (250-500 words), and grades 9-12 (500-750 words). Two winners are selected from each level and awarded a $500 gift card from Target. The contest opens in September and the deadline is December 1 (postmark). State winners are announced in March and national winners in April. For more information, send email to lettersaboutlit@epix.net.

MATHCOUNTS
MATHCOUNTS is a national math competition for middle school students (grades 6-8). Individuals and teams of four mathletes from each school compete on a local, state and national level. All 228 national competitors and their coaches receive all-expense-paid trips to the MATHCOUNTS National Competition. The national champion receives the $8,000 Donald G. Weinert Scholarship. The second place individual winner receives a $6,000 college scholarship. The third and fourth place winners (countdown round semi-finalists) receive $4,000 scholarships. The masters round champion receives a $2,000 scholarship. The written round winner receives a $8,000 scholarship and the written round runner-up receives a $6,000 scholarship. The members of the first place team each receive a $2,000 scholarship. Additional prizes include trips to US Space Camp, notebook computers, PDAs, and TI calculators. The registration deadline is in early December. Local and chapter competitions take place in February, state competitions in March, and the national competition in May. For more information, call 1-703-684-2828, fax 1-703-836-4875, write to MATHCOUNTS Foundation, 1420 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, or send email to info@mathcounts.org.

National Marbles Tournament Scholarships
The annual National Marbles Tournament awards $5,000 in scholarships to mibsters (marble shooters) aged 8 to 14. The tournament is held in June each year. The children crowned King and Queen of Marbles each receive a $2,000 scholarship. A $1,000 scholarship is awarded to the boy and girl who win the spontsmanship award. For more information, write to National Marbles Tournament, 811 Roeth Avenue, Cumberland, MD 21502.

National Geography Bee
The National Geography Bee is sponsored by the National Geographic Society. It is open to US students in grades 4-8 who are age 15 or younger by the date of the national competition. The National Geography Bee is a three stage competition, starting at the school level (competitions from mid-November through mid-January), followed by state competitions in April and the national competition in May. The ten finalists compete for college scholarships. The first place winner receives a $25,000 scholarship, the second place winner a $15,000 scholarship, and the third place winner a $10,000 scholarship. The school registration deadline is October 15. (There is a $50 school registration fee.) For more information, call 1-202-828-6659 or write to National Geographic Bee, National Geographic Society, 1145 17th Street N.W., Washington, DC 20036-4688.

National High School Oratorical Contest
The National High School Oratorical Contest is sponsored by the American Legion. It is open to US students in junior high school or high school (grades 7-12) who are under age 20 as of the date of the national contest. State contests are held no later than mid-March, and the national contest finals are held in April. The American Legion pays for the travel and lodging expenses of the state winners and their chaperones. The first place winner receives an $18,000 scholarship. The second place winner receives a $16,000 scholarship. The third place winner receives a $14,000 scholarship. Each state winner who participates in the first round of the national contest receives a $1,500 scholarship. For more information, call 1-317-630-1249, write to National Americanism and Children & Youth Division, The American Legion National Headquarters, PO Box 1055, Indianapolis, IN 46206, or send email to acy@legion.org.

National History Day Contest
The National History Day Contest is open to students in grades 6-12 in the junior (grades 6-8) and senior (grades 9-12) divisions. The projects relate to a specific historical topic or theme. There are seven categories, including individual papers, individual exhibits, group exhibits, individual performance, group performance, individual documentary, and group documentation. Within each category, the first place winner receives $1,000, the second place winner receives $500, and the third place winner receives $250. The national contest is held in June.

National Spelling Bee
The National Spelling Bee is sponsored by the E.W. Scripps Company. It is open to students in grades 1-8 as of their school finals (February 1) and who are under age 16 as of the date of the national finals (June 1). The champion wins a total of $28,000 in cash prizes and scholarships. The second place finisher wins a cash prize of $6,000, the third place finisher receives $3,500, the fourth place finisher receives $2,000, the fifth place finisher receives $1,250, the sixth place finisher receives $1,000, and the seventh place finisher receives $750. There are also assorted other prizes ranging from $50 to $600 for students who are eliminated in earlier rounds. For more information, call 1-513-977-3040, fax 1-513-977-3800, or send email to bee@scripps.com.

NewsCurrents Student Editorial Cartoon Contest
The NewsCurrents Student Editorial Cartoon Contest is sponsored by Knowledge Unlimited, Inc. and is open to students in grades K-12. There are three divisions: grades K-6, 7-9 and 10-12. First, second and third place winners in each division receive US Savings Bonds. The deadline is March 1 (postmark). For more information, call 1-800-356-2303 or write to NewsCurrents Cartoon Contest, PO Box 52, Madison, WI 53701.

Nicholas A. Virgilio Memorial Haiku Competition
The Nicholas A. Virgilio Memorial Haiku Competition is open to students in grades 7-12. Entries from home-schooled students are not accepted. The six winning haiku received $50. The deadline is March 25 (receipt).

Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Awards
The Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Awards are sponsored by the Nicholas Green Foundation and administered by the National Association for Gifted Children. One $500 US Savings Bond is awarded to a student from each state. Candidates should be students in grades 3-6 who have distinguished themselves in academics, leadership or the arts. The deadline is June 1. Individual State associations may have earlier deadlines (in some cases as early as January 1). See the web site for additional details.

Olive Garden Pasta Tales Essay Contest
The Olive Garden Pasta Tales essay contest is open to students in grades 1-12 from the US and Canada. Essays are 50 to 250 words on a topic that changes each year. The deadline is in early December. The grand prize winner will receive a $2,500 savings bond and a 3-day trip to New York City. One student in each grade category will receive a $500 savings bond,

Patriot's Pen
Patriot's Pen is an essay writing contest (patriotic theme) sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). It is open to US students in grades 6-8. More than 115,000 students enter the contest each year. The first place winner receives a $10,000 US Savings Bond. The 28 top national winners receive US Savings Bonds of $1,000 to $10,000. Entries are submitted through local VFW Posts. The contest is also known as the VFW Youth Essay Contest. The deadline is November 1. For more information, call 1-816-968-1117.

Prudential Spirit of Community Awards
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards recognize children in grades 5-12 who have engaged in volunteer activities and have demonstrated exceptional community service. The program is sponsored by Prudential in conjunction with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP). State winners receive a $1,000 award. National winners receive a $5,000 award. The student application deadline is in late October.

Red Vines Drawing Contest
Sponsored by the American Licorice Company, the Red Vines Drawing Contest is open to children in three age groups (as of May 1): kids (ages 6-12), teens (ages 13-18) and adult (ages 19+). The Grand Prize winner in each age group wins a $5,000 scholarship, with one first prize of $500 and five second prizes of $100 in each age group. Entries (one per person) consist of an original work of art that features the Red Vines logo. Winners will be selected on the basis of creativity and relevance to the Red Vines brand candy. The deadline is August 31. For more information, visit the web site or write to American Licorice Co., 2796 NW Clearwater Drive, Bend, OR 97701.

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are open to US and Canadian students in grades 7-12. It is sponsored by Scholastic Inc. and administered by the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, Inc. More than 250,000 students enter the competition each year. Gold Portfolio Award recipients receive $10,000 scholarships (5 for art, 5 for writing, 2 for photography). For more information, call 1-212-343-6493, write to The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012, or send email to A&WGeneralinfo@scholastic.com.

Start Something
Start Something is a joint program of Target and the Tiger Woods Foundation. It is aimed at US students aged 8 to 17. After participants complete three substantial projects, they are eligible to apply for a $5,000 scholarship. The scholarships are used to help winners pursue their goals. Scholarships are awarded three times a year. The deadlines are January 1, May 1 and September 1.

Team America Rocketry Challenge
Team America Rocketry Challenge is a national model rocket competition open to US junior high school and high school students (grades 7-12). It is sponsored by AIA and the National Association of Rocketry. The top 100 teams compete for $60,000 in scholarships. The application deadline is November 15. For more information, send email to rocketcontest@aia-aerospace.org.

ThinkQuest
ThinkQuest is an annual team competition in which students under age 19 create innovative and educational web sites. There are three age divisions: 9-12, 13-15, and 16-19. Teams may have three to six student members. Prizes include laptop computers, MP3 players, and digital cameras.

Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards
The Toshiba ExploraVision Awards is a competition for teams of 2-4 US and Canadian students in grades K-12. The goal of the competition is to encourage students to explora a vision of a future technology. The teams research a technology or device and project how it might change in the future. They identify necessary breakthroughs to enable the development of the technology and discuss the positive and negative impact of the technology on society. There are four divisions: grades K-3, grades 4-6, grades 7-9, and grades 10-12. Within each division, there is one first prize and one second prize. The first prize consists of a $10,000 US Savings Bond for each student on the winning team. The second prize consists of a $5,000 US Savings Bond for each student on the winning team. ExploraVision is sponsored by Toshiba and National Science Teachers of America. Materials are available starting in September. The deadline is February 1. For more information, call 1-800-EXPLOR9 (1-800-397-5679), write to ExploraVision, 1840 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201-3000, or send email to exploravision@nsta.org.

West Point Bridge Design Contest
The West Point Bridge Design Contest is open to US students age 13 through grade 12 at the time of registration. Students compete individually (team of one) or in teams of two members. This engineering competition involves designing truss bridges. Each member of the first-place team receives a $10,000 scholarship. Each member of the five finalist teams wins a notebook computer. Registration opens in early January and ends on February 28. The final round is held in April.

Young Naturalist Awards
The Young Naturalist Awards is a research-based science essay contest open to US and Canadian students in grades 7-12. It is sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the Chase Manhattan Foundation. Two scholarships are awarded to the winning essays at each grade level. The 7th grade winners receive $500. The 8th grade winners receive $750. The 9th grade winners receive $1,000. The 10th grade winners receive $1,500. The 11th grade winners receive $2,000. The 12th grade winners receive $2,500. Award winners and their family members also receive travel and lodging to attend the awards ceremony at the American Museum of Natural History in the spring. There are also 36 finalists who receive a cash award of $50 and a certificate. The deadline is in early January. For more information, call 1-212-496-3498, write to Young Naturalist Awards Administrator, National Center for Science Literacy, Education, and Technology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192 or send email to yna@amnh.org.

Youth Service America
Youth Service America offers the State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Grants to US children age 5-25 to implement service-learning projects for National Youth Service Day in April. One hundred $1,000 grants will be awarded. The application deadline is in mid-October. For more information, send email to GoodNeighbor@ysa.org.

The National Education Association (NEA) sponsors Youth Leaders for Literacy in conjunction with Youth Service America. This program awards 20 $500 grants to student-led initiatives. The program is open to applicants aged 21 and younger. The application deadline is in mid November.

Scholarships for Children Who Are Age 13

Many scholarship search sites take a more restrictive approach than required by COPPA, requiring individuals to be at least age 14 in order to register. (This is probably due to errors in published summaries of the requirements of COPPA. The act and regulations define child as "an individual under the age of 13".) This may make it more difficult for students who are 13 years old to find out information about scholarships.

The following scholarships are open to students who are 13 years old.

American Morgan Horse Institute Graywood Youth Horsemanship Grant
The American Morgan Horse Institute (AMHI) sponsors the Graywood Youth Horsemanship Grant for members of the Morgan youth club or American Morgan Horse Association, ages 13 to 21. One or two grants are awarded each year. The grant is used to cover costs of study of horse care, breeding, management, training and riding of Morgan horses. See the application for additional details. The deadline is February 1. For more information, send email to amhioffice@aol.com.

San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department Miss Recreation Pageant
The San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department sponsors the annual Miss Recreation Pageant for unmarried female students aged 13 to 18. Candidates must reside within the city limits of San Antonio. The student crowned Miss Recreation will receive a $2,000 scholarship. The application deadline is in early December.

Sizzling Style & Scholarly Smarts Scholarship Sweepstakes
CollegeBound Teen Magazine and N.Y.C. New York Color sponsor the Sizzling Style & Scholarly Smarts Scholarship. $1,000 will be awarded to the best 200-word essay about "what your one and only 'can't live without' beauty product is and why you can't live without it". Candidates must be at least 13 years old and legal residents of the United States. The deadline is January 31. For more information, write to CollegeBound Teen Magazine, N.Y.C. New York Color/Sizzling Style & Scholarly Smarts Sweepstakes, 1200 South Avenue, Suite 202, Staten Island, NY 10314.