More than 10,000 Houston area graduating high school seniors have had the honor of being named a Jones Scholar through the Jesse H. and Mary Gibbs Jones Scholars Program. When Houston Endowment initiated the program in 1958, four Jones Scholars were selected from each of the high school graduating classes in the Houston Independent School District. In 1959, the program was expanded to include districts contiguous to the Houston Independent School District. Later, it grew to include all school districts within Harris County. Since the program’s inception, Houston Endowment has provided more than $87 million to help 10,503 Jones Scholars attend college.

In 2010, new guidelines, that differ substantially from those previously in effect, were instituted to provide flexibility to Scholars in meeting their financial need. Under the new guidelines, the Jones Scholars Program has become a need-based program. Jones Scholars are eligible to receive up to a total of $16,000 over six academic years. Payments are based on the uncovered amount before loans, limited to $5,000 annually. Some Scholars are likely to receive considerable monetary amounts from scholarships from the university they are attending and from other outside sources. In these cases, total payments on their Jones Scholars award may be substantially less than $16,000. The new guidelines offer Scholars the ability to adjust the amount they request from their Jones Scholar award each year, including flexibility towards requesting funds for summer school. For some Scholars, this will enable them to maximize their total financial aid package during their undergraduate studies.

These new guidelines apply to all students graduating from high school in 2011 and after.