A New Path for Young Entrepreneurs: The Vincent Vendittelli Scholarship Opens Nationwide

New Vincent Vendittelli Scholarship Opens for Aspiring Business Builders

Vincent Vendittelli today launched the Vincent Vendittelli Scholarship, a new nationwide fund aimed at helping students who want to start businesses or study entrepreneurship. The scholarship is open to undergraduate and graduate students across the United States, and applications are now being accepted. The announcement says the program is meant for students who have a clear business idea or a record of small-scale ventures and who need financial and mentoring support to take the next step.

Vendittelli framed the effort as practical help rather than a promise: winners will receive cash awards, guidance from experienced entrepreneurs, and introductions to potential partners. The program begins accepting applications immediately and will run on an annual cycle.

What the Scholarship Covers, Who Can Apply, and How Winners Are Chosen

According to the announcement, the scholarship will award up to 20 grants of $10,000 each in its first year. Awards are intended to cover tuition, seed capital, or living costs tied to students’ business projects. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents enrolled full-time or part-time at an accredited college or university, or students who graduated within the past two years and are pursuing a startup full-time.

The selection process has several steps: a written application that outlines the applicant’s business concept, a short personal essay about their entrepreneurial experience, and a budget outline explaining how the money will be used. A panel of judges made up of entrepreneurs, investors, and educators will review submissions and name a pool of semifinalists. Those semifinalists will be invited to virtual interviews and asked to pitch their projects in a brief video presentation. Finalists will be chosen on the basis of originality, feasibility, social impact, and the applicant’s demonstrated commitment.

The scholarship is being run by the Vendittelli Foundation, with program support from a national entrepreneurship nonprofit and a network of university incubators that will offer mentoring and office hours to winners. The foundation says the first round of awards will be announced in late spring, with funds distributed by the start of the next academic term.

Vincent Vendittelli’s Path to Supporting Student Founders

Vincent Vendittelli is a founder-turned-philanthropist who built several small companies before turning to philanthropy in recent years. He is best known in business circles for backing local startups and for funding training programs that teach practical skills—accounting, pitching, and basic legal know-how—to early-stage entrepreneurs.

Vendittelli said he models the scholarship on the kind of help he wishes he’d had starting out: modest capital, hands-on coaching, and introductions to people who can open doors. The foundation’s track record includes smaller grant rounds and sponsorships of entrepreneurship bootcamps.

What Winners Might Gain Beyond the Cash

The scholarship is small in dollar terms but potentially big in practical value, say people who work with student entrepreneurs. For many students, $10,000 is enough to prototype a product, pay living costs for a summer of work, or cover part of tuition while they launch a business. The added value, according to the foundation, will come from mentorship hours and access to university incubators; winners will get time with legal advisers, product mentors, and investors who can critique a pitch.

Beyond the money, the program promises networking: winners will be invited to a yearly summit where past recipients, donors, and partner mentors meet. That kind of gathering can lead to co-founders, early hires, or pilot customers—things that matter more than a single cash award for many small ventures.

For the broader entrepreneurship ecosystem, the fund could nudge universities to pay more attention to students with low resources who have practical ideas but lack access. It also signals a growing refrain among philanthropists: fund small, hands-on programs that combine cash with real-world connections rather than creating large endowments alone.

How to Apply and What to Prepare

Students who want to apply should look for the scholarship’s official application page, where the full rules and forms are posted. The foundation asks applicants to submit a two-page proposal, a one-page budget, a short personal essay, and a single recommendation from a professor, mentor, or employer. The deadline for the current cycle is March 31, 2026, and finalists will be notified by mid-April.

The foundation encourages applicants to be specific about milestones—what they will build, who the customers are, and how they will spend the money. Applicants can contact the scholarship team via the foundation’s public email address for questions or to request accommodations.

Sources

• prnewswire.com