Marcus Stroman Scholarship

The Bronx has the highest rate of poverty in New York City, with one in three residents living below the poverty level and many others facing numerous financial challenges.

As a result, many students who graduate from Bronx high schools have limited funds as they pursue their goal of higher education. The inaccessibility of college degrees due to the rising costs of tuition and living expenses only serves to continue the cycle of poverty and to keep talented students from achieving their dreams.

For these reasons, New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman established the Marcus Stroman Scholarship, an initiative of his Height Doesn’t Measure Heart (HDMH) Foundation. The mission of the HDMH Foundation is to create opportunities for in-need youth to rise above their circumstances, realize their greatest potential, and never stop pursuing their dreams. With the creation of the Marcus Stroman Scholarship, Marcus strives to help Bronx-based students access transformative opportunities during their collegiate years.

The Marcus Stroman Scholarship seeks to support ambitious students who are preparing to graduate from a Bronx high school and have been accepted to the college of their dreams. The scholarship will look to identify applicants with true ambition and a drive to succeed in their pursuit for higher education. The scholarship will be awarded to two students who demonstrate an absolute determination to achieve greatness and have their dreams realized without the stress of affording those dreams.

Marcus Stroman’s success in baseball and off the field serves as a prime example of how persistence, determination, and resilience in the face of adversity can lead to real success. Marcus prides much of this success on completing his college degree from Duke University. He has always preached the importance of higher learning and it has inspired his pursuit of establishing this scholarship.

Seniors (12^th graders) studying at a high school in the Bronx with a 3.0+ GPA may apply for this scholarship. To apply, students must submit an essay and video describing the college of their dreams, and why they wish to continue their education at that university.