New Roanoke College students from across Southwest Virginia will automatically receive four-year scholarships starting next fall under a new regional scholarship program.
The Southwest Virginia Scholars Award, announced Tuesday, will give $5,000 a year to incoming students from 24 counties and eight cities stretching from Botetourt County to the far southwest tip of the state.
The scholarship is intended to “open the doors for a new generation of Southwest Virginians,” according to a news release.
“Education continues to be one of the most powerful engines for prosperity and opportunity that a community can provide,” Roanoke College President Frank Shushok Jr. said in a statement.
“Through the Southwest Virginia Scholars Award, we’re making an enduring investment in the students of Southwest Virginia and in the future of this vibrant region we’re proud to call home. This is part of our core commitment to ensuring that talent and ambition are able to flourish here.”
Students will not need to request or apply for the scholarship, which has no income requirements, according to the release. It will automatically be granted to admitted students from eligible locations.
The current annual tuition cost at Roanoke College is about $38,420 a year before scholarships and financial aid.
Students enrolling at Roanoke College as freshmen starting with the 2027-28 school year are eligible for the scholarship. Students must be attending the school full-time and in-person.
Residents from the following localities are eligible: Bland, Botetourt, Buchanan, Carroll, Craig, Dickenson, Floyd, Franklin, Giles, Grayson, Henry, Lee, Montgomery, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Pulaski, Roanoke, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wise and Wythe counties, and the cities of Bristol, Danville, Galax, Martinsville, Norton, Radford, Roanoke and Salem.
This fall, 419 freshmen enrolled at Roanoke College. Of those, 101 come from one of the now-eligible communities, Alicia Petska, a communications specialist for the college, said in an email.
Roanoke College leaders hope that the new scholarship, combined with other awards and financial aid, will help cover the cost of tuition for “the region’s highest-need students,” according to the release. Students at the private school are also eligible for the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant, a state award that provides up to $5,250 to Virginia residents attending private, nonprofit colleges and universities in the state.
About 95% of students at the college receive merit or need-based grants, according to the release. About 1,800 students attended Roanoke College during the 2025-26 school year, according to SCHEV data.
“We recognize how financially challenging a college education can be for families. This initiative reinforces our longstanding commitment to ensuring that cost should not be a barrier for students who wish to attend Roanoke College,” Mark Campbell, vice president for enrollment strategy and student success, said in a statement. “We are particularly proud to signal this idea in the strongest possible way to our own region.”
The scholarship program announcement comes as colleges and universities across Virginia and the country seek to appeal to broader groups of students as enrollment numbers decline nationally and student interest in traditional four-year colleges changes.
In recent years, Roanoke College has introduced new programs including a free associate degree program for local high school students and online courses for professionals, and the school is piloting three-year degree programs.
Roanoke College also offers the Roanoke Promise program that provides low-income and first-generation students with stipends for textbooks, electronics and housing support.
For more information about the Southwest Virginia Scholars Award, visit roanoke.edu/SWVAScholars.
