Morehead-Cain Scholarship

The Morehead-Cain Scholarship (originally the Morehead Scholarship) was the first merit scholarship program established in the United States, founded at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It is named for its benefactors, John Motley Morehead III and the Gordon and Mary Cain Foundation. Modeled after the Rhodes Scholarship, the Morehead-Cain provides a full four-year scholarship covering tuition, books, room and board, a laptop computer, and four summer experiences known as the Morehead-Cain's Summer Enrichment Program. Nominees must be a competitive applicant to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and unmarried with no children.

The Morehead Scholarship was created in 1951 by the Morehead Foundation, when John Motley Morehead III, bequeathed to the University of North Carolina $130 million, commissioned the university's planetarium, and funded the John Motley Morehead Foundation. The Foundation was renamed the Morehead-Cain Scholarship in 2007 after the Gordon and Mary Cain Foundation contributed US$100 million.

The Summer Enrichment Program was established in 1974. It fully funds activities for students in four areas (Outdoor Leadership, Public Service, Inquiry and exploration, and Private Enterprise) which occur in the summers before their respective class year.

The summer before students enter the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, they participate in NOLS and Outward Bound courses throughout the country in order to push themselves physically and mentally through a number of grueling challenges.

The next summer, students travel the world performing public service in a variety of settings. Projects range from teaching fellowships in New York City to pre-natal care in Rwanda.

Before the student's Junior year they have an opportunity to design a research topic and travel domestically or internationally in search of answers. Projects have included topics ranging from investigation of modern transportation in communist nations to exploration of traditional medicine in South America. Students may also seek non-profit, governmental, or private enterprise internships.

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