Pinellas Community Foundation

Pinellas Community Foundation supports education-focused philanthropy in Florida through scholarships tied to specific communities, schools, and fields of study. Its scholarship activity reaches students at multiple stages of education, from high school seniors seeking associate or bachelor’s degrees to postgraduate law students pursuing a law degree. The organization’s work shows a strong connection to Pinellas County and neighboring areas, with eligibility and preference criteria that repeatedly anchor support in local geography and community participation. Its portfolio includes the Don Smith Family Scholarship, which serves Stetson University College of Law students who are current Boys & Girls Club volunteers or who regularly attended a Boys & Girls Club in the past. That scholarship is need-based, does not require an essay, and gives special consideration to students connected to Boys & Girls Clubs in Pinellas, Hillsborough, or Pasco counties in Florida. The 2026 application cycle listed for that program runs from January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2026, with award amounts that vary. Pinellas Community Foundation also supports younger students through awards such as the Lari White Cannon Scholarship, which is directed to graduating seniors from Dunedin High School in Florida who have a passion for the performing arts. That scholarship requires a minimum 3.00 GPA, Pinellas County residency, and plans to pursue performing arts at the associate or bachelor’s level. Taken together, these programs show an organization that invests in local students, values community service and prior youth-development involvement, and channels philanthropic support toward both academic advancement and the arts in the Pinellas County region of Florida.