Dollars for Scholars (DFS) of Lancaster County is part of the national organization Dollars for Scholars^®.  Dollars for Scholars, a program of Scholarship America, is a national umbrella program which includes over 1,200 community-based, volunteer-driven, scholarship foundations in cities throughout the United States. 

We are the only chapter which awards interest-free loans and are one 
of the largest and most successful chapters in the Dollars for Scholars national organization-- in terms of the amount of money awarded and the number of recipients each year.

The purpose of DFS of Lancaster County is to provide financial assistance to residents of Lancaster County in their pursuit of higher education without regard to race, color, creed, gender, or age.

Since our inception in 1961, we have set out to accomplish our purpose by expanding the number of loan recipients, and by building our financial assets to make our goals possible.

We first awarded $5,400 to fifteen graduating high school seniors. In 2008 we announced an appropriation of $679,500 to 458 recipients. Lancaster County students attend accredited two and four-year institutions not only in Lancaster County, but as far-flung as Alaska and California.  Many attend technical and trade schools.
 

This is primarily a volunteer organization, with the exception of one part-time office administrator. Volunteers  prepare and distribute application materials, meet with high school guidance counselors, perform needs analysis calculations, and prepare the paperwork for hundreds of loans each year. This means that the contributed dollars go directly to fund loans.