Beyoncé is offering four US college scholarships to mark the one year anniversary of her visual album Lemonade.
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The Formation Scholars program will give awards to “young women who are unafraid to think outside the box and are bold, creative, conscious and confident,” according to the announcement.
The awards aim to inspire and encourage young women of colour to work to their fullest potential, and be credited for their success. The four colleges to participate are: Berklee College of Music, Howard University, Parsons School of Design and Spelman College.
According to reports, each college will nominate one recipient for the 2017-2018 academic year. However, incoming, current and graduate students who are studying creative arts, music, literature or African American studies are also eligible to apply.
In some of the colleges, the award will cover some of the first semester’s tuition.
Spelman College indicates the one-time award is worth $25,000 on its website, which would cover a little more than one semester’s worth of tuition, fees and room and board.
In order to apply, students are asked to submit a portfolio of work and answer an essay prompt: “How has LEMONADE inspired your educational goals?”
LEMONADE was the highest selling album globally last year after selling 2.5 million copies, earning Queen Bey two Grammys and the prestigious Peabody award, last week.
The album title was inspired by Beyoncé’s grandmother Agnéz Deréon, as well as her husband Jay Z’s grandmother, Hattie White. At the end of track “Freedom”, Hattie says “I had my ups and downs, but I always find the inner strength to pull myself up. I was served lemons, but I made lemonade.”
Watch Bey in the Formation video below and tweet us your thoughts on the scholarship at @CelebMix