Student Leader Scholarship Program
Scholarship Program Introduction 

Welcome to the Student Leader Scholarship virtual blood drive information and eligibility page! Please read the scholarship program guidelines below to ensure you are eligible. Once eligibility is determined, you can start your virtual blood drive by clicking on the button below! 

Start My Blood Drive!

The Student Leader Scholarship program dates are June 1 – Aug. 31. Once you sign up at the button below, you will be provided your unique scholarship blood drive link via email. In order to gain credit towards your blood drive, all donors must use your scholarship link to pledge and donate. Vitalant’s scholarship program is non-competitive and is a great opportunity to earn funds toward your future education.

Once you are a part of the program, you will be assigned a Vitalant representative who can provide updates on your blood drive. If you have any questions, please call 877-258-4825 option 3, email MakeAnImpact@vitalant.org or contact your local account representative for questions.

Program Guidelines

  • The scholarship program period is June 1 – Aug. 31, 2023.
  • All virtual blood drives and blood donations must be completed June 1 – Aug. 31 to be counted toward the student’s scholarship total. Donations made prior to June 1 or after close of business Aug. 31 will not count toward the scholarship total.
  • To qualify for the scholarship, students are required to request a custom blood drive link by filling out the online form at vitalant.org/scholarship and host a virtual blood drive.
  • Students will be provided a custom blood drive link to recruit blood donors and record their scholarship blood donations. 
  • To count toward the scholarship, blood donations must be made using the student’s unique virtual blood drive link. 
  • Completed blood donations must be made to count toward the scholarship goal. Deferrals and unsuccessful donations will not count toward the scholarship goal. 
  • Donations must be completed in compliance with the virtual blood drive process to count toward the scholarship goal. Completed blood donations that are not tracked by the student’s scholarship link will not count toward the scholarship goal. 
  • Vitalant account managers can provide virtual blood drive status updates. 
  • When the program period ends, scholarship recipients will receive an email with a Vitalant provided scholarship information form required for fund distribution to the student’s school. 
  • Scholarships must be claimed within 12 months of initial email notification. 
  • Scholarships will be dispersed to the designated college, university or trade school the student designates, in the student’s name. 
  • No scholarships will be awarded directly to an individual student. 
  • Scholarships are not transferrable. 
  • Students must meet the following eligibility requirements to participate: 
    • Be enrolled, plan to enroll or be accepted for the 2023 fall or 2024 spring semester for curriculum at a college, university, community college, trade school or other post-high school educational facility within the United States.  
    • For high school participants, student leaders must be planning to continue their education in the fall or spring semester of the next academic year. Full-time enrollment is not required. 
  • This one-time scholarship program is not associated with other Vitalant scholarship programs or promotions. 
  • All scholarship credits are subject to review and verification prior to awarding the scholarship.  
  • Students who have received scholarships in other Vitalant scholarship programs, and meet all program requirements, are eligible to participate.
  • Students are responsible for verifying their eligibility to participate. Vitalant reserves the right to not pay the scholarship based on blood drive results and student eligibility that do not meet the program criteria. 
  • Scholarships will be distributed at the end of the program, after program results have been audited and finalized.
  • Students should allow a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks for scholarship distribution processing and receipt of payment.
  • Friends and family members of Vitalant staff are eligible to participate in the scholarship program. 
  • For questions, students may contact a local Vitalant representative or call 877-25-VITAL, option 3. 

Frequently Asked Questions
You’ll receive your scholarship blood drive link in an email with instructions and resource links within minutes of submitting the form to start your blood drive. It’s a good practice to check spam and junk folders for an email from getinvolved@vitalant.northeast.org if an email does not populate your inbox.
 
If you don’t receive your confirmation email, and you’ve checked your spam and junk folders, you should submit another request form. The first form could have been submitted with an error in the email address. Be sure to use an email you check frequently and make sure it is entered correctly.
 
To recruit donors, you must copy and paste the full virtual blood drive link to enable accurate tracking, unless you create a QR code (see below). Students should promote their drives and share their scholarship blood drive links through social media, email, phone calls, tabling, and personal asks. The donor’s email address is used to track their donation to the student’s drive, and the email address must be the same from pledge to donation. A 2-minute instructional video is available on Vimeo and YouTube. Watch it and share the link with donors so they know exactly what to do when they join your drive!

A QR code may be used to convert the blood drive link using the instructions in this document. If these exact instructions aren’t followed, you could corrupt your blood drive link and disable the link’s tracking functionality. A BitLy is strongly discouraged and should not be used to shorten the virtual blood drive link.
 
Per the program guidelines, students receive credit for successful (completed) blood donations. Attempts, deferrals, incomplete and unsuccessful donations do not count toward the scholarship credits.
Yes! Depending on the procedure, a donor may be eligible to give more than once during the scholarship program period. Educating donors about different types of donations, like Power Red and platelet donations, are great ways to support patients and accumulate credits toward a scholarship. Repeat donors must submit a new pledge before each donation to track accurately. You can find educational materials about the different types of donations best suited to a donor’s blood type in the Student Toolkit.
Yes! Students who are eligible are encouraged to donate to their own blood drive. Students need to follow the same process as other donors participating in their blood drive: they need to pledge using their personal blood drive link and use the same email address from pledge to donation.
Your account manager or another Vitalant representative can view and share virtual blood drive results with you. If you’re not sure who to contact, please call 877.25.VITAL and select option 3.
Students are encouraged to stay in contact with their account manager for regular progress reports. Account managers are also a great resource for recruitment ideas! After the program ends Aug. 31, blood drive results will be audited. Students will be notified of their scholarship award via email in September.

Click on the tiles below for informational flyers, social media tools, donor eligibility information, location information and more.

student tools and resources
student tools and resources
student tools and resources

Instructional Video

Watch this short video to learn how to use your blood drive link. Share the video with donors you recruit so they follow instructions and have their donations tracked to your scholarship.

Vein to Vein: The Science of Blood Donation
  • 4.5 million Americans need blood transfusions every year
  • 1 in 7 people that enter the hospital need blood
  • Every pint of blood that you donate can save up to three lives

 

Important Scholarship Details

Each student leader needs to meet the 25-credit minimum to qualify for a one-time $500 scholarship, and each student leader can earn up to $1,000 toward their college tuition. 

Credits Earned Scholarship Award
25 to 49 credits $500
50 to 74 credits $750
75+ credits $1,000
Donation Type Scholarship Credits
Platelets 3
Power Red & Plasma 2
Whole blood 1

Remember, once you’ve reached the first scholarship tier you can continue to recruit blood donors to unlock a higher scholarship award.