MassMutual announces Multicultural Scholarship Program.

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) announced the launch of a new national multicultural scholarship program that will offer $60,000 in scholarships and potential internship opportunities in financial services to outstanding college students of color. The San Francisco Bay Area is one of the four metropolitan areas piloting the program.

Beginning this month, students of African-American, Asian/Pacific Islander, or Hispanic descent who reside in the San Francisco Bay Area or the Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles metropolitan areas can apply for one of 12 $5,000 college scholarships. These students must have concentrations in the fields of accounting, business, economics, finance, marketing, math or statistics.

MassMutual is collaborating with the San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency, the local general agency, to provide three scholarships to Bay Area students. Three scholarships will be awarded in each of the targeted metropolitan areas. The program will be administered by the Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF). In its 33-year history, HSF has awarded in excess of 86,000 scholarships worth more than $250 million to Latinos attending nearly 2,000 colleges and universities in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“We are very happy to be one of the four metropolitan areas selected to participate in the scholarship program,” said Robert Fakhimi, CEO and Managing Partner, San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency. “We will be carefully working with local colleges and universities to find outstanding students who meet the scholarship criteria to encourage them to apply and develop careers in the financial services field.”

“We are grateful that MassMutual is collaborating with HSF,” said Frank D. Alvarez, HSF President and CEO. “With this program, MassMutual recognizes that an investment in youth pays measurable returns for the communities where we live and work. These funds bring HSF one step closer to its mission of supporting the educational aspirations of multiple ethnic communities. We salute MassMutual for expanding opportunities for more students and increasing diversity at more college campuses.”

To be eligible, students must be of African-American, Asian/Pacific Islander, or Hispanic descent, be a sophomore, junior or senior enrolled full-time at a U.S. accredited college or university majoring in accounting, business, economics, finance, marketing, math or statistics, have a minimum GPA of 3.0, and reside in the Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles or San Francisco metropolitan areas. Select agencies will offer internship opportunities to scholarship recipients providing them exposure to a career in financial services.

To apply, students can visit www.hsf.net/massmutual.aspx. The deadline for applications is February 18, 2009. Recipients will be announced in June 2009.