What is Valley Scholars?
Valley Scholars is JMU’s bold commitment to expanding opportunity for local students. Our innovative program pairs early college preparation with the promise of a JMU education.
Each fall, JMU selects 35 exceptional seventh-grade students and walks alongside them for years — preparing them for college, opening doors, and ultimately removing financial barriers that too often stand in the way.
Many programs offer preparation. Few offer undergraduate support. Others offer scholarships. Valley Scholars is powerful because it does all three — creating a clear, supported pathway from promise to achievement.
Who are Valley Scholars?
Valley Scholars are high-achieving, first-generation students — those whose parents did not earn a four-year degree — with significant financial need from across the Shenandoah Valley. They are driven, capable and ready for more — students whose talent and determination deserve a pathway as strong as their potential.
Students who complete the Valley Scholars program and are admitted to JMU receive a four-year scholarship covering tuition and fees. Once they arrive on campus as Dukes, that support continues through personalized guidance and a community built for their success. The result is an 80% combined retention and graduation rate, far exceeding national outcomes for first-generation students.
Why we need your support?
Your support fuels this promise. A gift to the Valley Scholars Scholarship Fund ensures that these remarkable students can take their place at JMU — and thrive once they arrive.
Together, we can turn potential into achievement, open doors that change lives and strengthen the future of the Shenandoah Valley — one Duke at a time.
