Thanks USA

Since its inception, ThanksUSA has been able to meet only a fraction of the demand, awarding need-based scholarships to just 10 to 15 percent of our applicant pool each year. ThanksUSA's primary goal is to increase the number of scholarships awarded each year to further expand the national breadth of the ThanksUSA scholarship program.

With more than 2,400 scholarship applications processed this past summer, we continue to be amazed by our growing community. To meet the evolving needs of our scholars, we launched the Pathways for Patriots program to help bridge the gap between higher education and meaningful employment. In collaboration with our corporate partners, we act as a catalyst for career development opportunities that reveal military family members’ unique skillsets while alleviating their common challenges.

The Pathways for Patriots program will engage corporations from specific industries (i.e., STEM, Public Service, Healthcare, Hospitality, Financial Services, Manufacturing, and Energy) to create pipelines of military spouses and children interested in pursuing post-secondary degrees, certifications, and ultimately careers in hard-to-fill occupations through networking, internships, and employee engagement.

ThanksUSA also continues to partner with other organizations to spread the word about its military family scholarship program, and holds fundraising events throughout the year to raise money and spread awareness about ThanksUSA's mission.

Supporters of ThanksUSA can be confident that their funds will be used effectively. Our fiscal responsibility, financial transparency, strong governance, and average expense ratio of only 10 percent serve as an excellent measurement of integrity, financial health, and operational stability. Since 2006, ThanksUSA has awarded 4,500 scholarships valued at more than $14 million.

ThanksUSA has an exceptional and diverse Board of Directors and Advisory Council, represented by our military's most senior service members and spouses. Nearly one-third of our governing-body members are women or minorities. Through its Congressional Advisory Board, ThanksUSA also has the support of more than 125 Members of Congress. See www.ThanksUSA.org/governance for more information.

ThanksUSA has established a broad need-based audience of military spouses and children who are benefiting from the financial assistance of an educational scholarship. We have scholars around the country who are representatives of our mission and who will continue to positively impact their own communities. We hope to provide this service to more of the worthy applicants and continue to acknowledge and thank our service members and their families. We also plan to establish a full alumni database in order to better track our progress and to include more individuals in the fulfillment of our mission.