Students & Alumni

The Promise

The Promise provides graduates of El Dorado High School with a scholarship covering tuition and mandatory fees that can be used at any accredited two- or four-year, public or private educational institution in the US. The maximum amount payable is up to the highest annual resident tuition at an Arkansas public university

Student Stories

 “I want to go to the University of Arkansas, play football and major in sports medicine. I used to think I would have to depend on playing football to go to college, but not anymore. The Promise will make college happen for me, with or without football.”

-Greg Carter, Student

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The Promise Has Taken Them There

When EHS graduates think about their future and where they want to be, they know they have the Promise to help get them on that path. The Promise can take them where they want to go. In fact, the Promise has taken the 2,025 Promise recipients to 129 different colleges and universities in 29 different states

Returning to the Promise

A group of Promise recipients have come full circle and have returned to the place where it all began. Many EHS graduates, who received the El Dorado Promise and then completed their college degree, have returned to El Dorado to work in the school district. Bringing the Promise full circle provides a unique perspective for these Promise graduates. 

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About our Promise Sholars

The El Dorado Promise scholars that go on to complete their college degrees and then return to contribute to our local community are always a welcome sign. The Promise is designed to enhance life here in El Dorado, which makes it rewarding to see that so many scholar graduates choose to pay it forward by returning here.

In fact, we have seen this happen quite frequently. A large group of scholarship recipients went off to their respective The El Dorado Promise colleges and graduated before returning back to work in the El Dorado School District. These are educators that know firsthand the power of the Promise and they are advocates for it as they work and engage with fellow students in the school system.

The El Dorado Promise alumni have studied all over the country

The El Dorado Promise awards high school graduates with money to cover tuition and mandatory expenses that come with a two- or four-year college or university either here in Arkansas or elsewhere throughout the country. This financial boost has produced El Dorado Promise graduates that learned in institutions that span across the country, from California to Maine. This illustrates the truly limitless opportunity that Promise scholars get through this unique program.

How The El Dorado Promise scholars can fully leverage the program

It’s important to understand the fine details of this scholarship program and how it can work for El Dorado High School graduates. The amount of scholarship money is based off of the length
of time a student has spent in the El Dorado School District.
Students that have spent kindergarten through high school are awarded 100 percent of the scholarship money, which is equal to the highest in-state public college or university rate.

Students who have not been in the system all 13 years will receive a prorated sum. The El Dorado Promise colleges are any accredited two- or four-year college or university in the country. The scholarship can be renewed for five consecutive years and scholars must maintain a 2.0 GPA or better and complete 12 credit hours per semester to remain eligible. The Promise has enhanced, and in some ways transformed, the educational landscape in this
town, and it’s very evident when you look at the many The El Dorado Promise scholars that have been positively affected.

El Dorado Promise

2000 Wildcat Drive, El Dorado, AR 71730
For questions about the application, call The Promise Office at 870-864-5128.