Cumberland Farms Celebrates 10th Year of Scholarship Program

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. — A decade after its creation, Cumberland Farms’ Believe and Achieve Scholarship Program has exceeded more than $1 million in financial assistance to 1,000-plus “bright, ambitious young individuals, helping them pursue their dreams of achieving a college education,” the convenience store retailer announced.

The Believe and Achieve program provides $1,000 scholarships annually to 130 eligible graduating high school seniors across its service area. This year, Cumberland Farms has awarded $130,000 to 37 students in Massachusetts, 23 in Florida, 27 in New York, 14 in New Hampshire, eight in Connecticut, 13 in Maine, three in Vermont, four in Rhode Island and one in New Jersey.

"Giving back to the communities we serve is a critical part of our company mission; we had this in mind when we started the Believe and Achieve Scholarship Program back in 2006, with the goal of helping hard-working and ambitious young people," said Ari Haseotes, CEO of Cumberland Farms. "After a full decade, over 1,000 students, and more than $1 million in scholarships awarded, we are truly proud of the difference we are able to make for these deserving young men and women, and we continue to be inspired by them every step of the way."

The Believe and Achieve Scholarship Program is open to students entering a full-time undergraduate course of study at an accredited college, university or vocational-technical school who live within 30 miles of any Cumberland Farms store. Scholarships are awarded based on a student's academic performance and financial need, as well as involvement in extracurricular activities such as community service and athletics. 

Believe and Achieve recipients from Cumberland Farms’ service areas have attended colleges and universities including Harvard University, Yale, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Purdue, University of Massachusetts, Clemson, Florida State, University of Michigan, Princeton, University of Florida, Rochester Institute of Technology, New York University and University of Miami. 

THE HASEOTES SCHOLAR

For the second year, Cumberland Farms has designated one Believe and Achieve Scholarship winner as the Haseotes Scholar. Named after the founders of the company, the Haseotes Scholar award is presented to the student who best exemplifies Cumberland Farms’ values of hard work, achievement and community commitment.

This year’s winner is Katie Curran of Pocasset, Mass. "I am very proud to not only be a Believe and Achieve Scholarship winner, but also to be recognized as the Haseotes Scholar. I'm tremendously grateful that Cumberland Farms has made such an effort to help my dream of attending college become a reality," said Curran, who will enter Columbia University this fall. "On behalf of all recipients Cumberland Farms has helped over the past 10 years, I'd like to say 'thank you' for caring about us, our communities, and for making a difference in the lives of young people like me."

The application process for the 2017 Believe and Achieve Scholarship Program will open in October.

Framingham-based Cumberland Farms operates a network of 600-plus convenience stores across eight states.