If you are interested in a rewarding career in the restaurant and foodservice industry, the Colorado Restaurant Foundation offers a variety of merit-based scholarships for students considering enrolling in post-secondary culinary and hospitality programs.
The Colorado Restaurant Foundation, in partnership with our Scholarship Donors, awards scholarships to qualified students in foodservice/hospitality management programs. Applicants must have demonstrated strong interest in the foodservice/hospitality industry, as evidenced through documentable work experience in the industry. CRF scholarships are merit-based. Demographic information is not used to establish eligibility; financial information collected through this application is for data-collection purposes only and will not impact scholarship award decisions.
Thanks to our generous donors for offering the following scholarships for the 2025-2026 school year:
- Weil Family Foundation Scholarship: $5,000
- Two (2) T. Kevin McNicholas Foundation Scholarships: $5,000 each
- Knobel Family Scholarship: $4,000
- Chris Weil, Kae De Brent Hodges Fund, and FoodMATCH: $3,500
- Colorado Restaurant Association Mile High Chapter Scholarship: $3,000
- Two (2) Fred M. Laurita Scholarships: $2,500 each
- DiPasquale Family Foundation Scholarship: $2,500
- Swire Coca-Cola Scholarship: $2,500
- MIBE Scholarship: $2,500
The deadline to submit an application for an undergraduate scholarship is Friday, March 14, 2025.
Undergraduate Students
Post-secondary students enrolled in culinary and hospitality programs at Colorado colleges and universities can submit one application to apply for all available scholarships. Any applications which do not meet the following criteria or are not legible will be automatically disqualified:
- You must be a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident.
- You must plan to use the scholarship in a foodservice/hospitality-related program at an accredited post-secondary institution/program in the state of Colorado.
- You must be enrolled or plan to enroll as a full-time or substantial part-time student, taking a minimum of 9 credit hours each term.
- You must plan to be enrolled for at least two upcoming consecutive semesters.
- You must have at least six months of industry-related work experience.
- Applicants who meet the minimum criteria will be invited to interview with the scholarship committee. An interview is required to be awarded a scholarship.
- Scholarship recipients will be announced in April 2025. Award winners must attend the CRF Scholarship Celebration in February or March 2026.
Colorado ProStart® Students
Colorado ProStart® students can submit one application to apply for all available scholarships. Any applications that do not meet the following criteria or are not legible will be automatically disqualified:
- You must be a senior enrolled in the Colorado ProStart® program at your high school or in your school district.
- You must be accepted into an approved post-secondary program, starting in the fall 2025 term.
- You must have some documented industry-related work experience.
