Mary Kay Inc.’s 50th anniversary celebration has painted the city pink all year. And now, the global cosmetics company is looking to spread a little green. In collaboration with the Junior League of Dallas, two of the city’s most philanthropic organizations will award $25,000 in scholarships to deserving Dallas ISD college bound women through a new Junior League of Dallas (JLD) program, Women LEAD (Learn. Excel. Achieve. Dream.).
“The League is committed to creating future leaders and I can’t think of a better way to do that than providing women the opportunity to enhance their education,” said Laura Johnson, President of JLD. “We are proud of this program, and are honored to have the opportunity to work with Mary Kay Inc., as we continue creating opportunities to develop women leaders in our community.”
The program is inspired by Mary Kay Ash — founder of the now iconic and global cosmetics company that she started in Dallas 50 years ago with just $5,000 and a dream of enriching women’s lives. Through a combination of an application, essay and oratory competitions, entrants will be evaluated on their interpretation of the entrepreneur’s founding principles in their essay response, academic record and community involvement. The Women LEAD scholarship program will award $25,000 in college scholarships to four female senior high school students at Emmett J. Conrad High School in the Dallas Independent School District.
“Mary Kay has a long-term commitment to empowering women, just like the Junior League of Dallas,” said Crayton Webb, director of corporate social responsibility and corporate communications. “On the occasion of Mary Kay’s 50th anniversary, we hope the Women LEAD scholarship program will provide an opportunity for several young women to go to college, pursue their dreams and go on to serve and help others.”
The scholarship application was released to Emmett J. Conrad High School students in October and applications are due in mid-January. Ten selected finalists will prepare a three- to five-minute speech and compete in a speech contest in March 2014. Finalists will be judged on content, delivery and stage presence by a panel of judges from the Junior League of Dallas and, Mary Kay Inc. along with community leaders.
The first place winner will receive a one-time $10,000 scholarship. Second, third and fourth place winners will each receive a one-time $5,000 scholarship. For more information, please visit www.jld.net.
About The Junior League of Dallas
The Junior League of Dallas (JLD) is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Since 1922, JLD has been building a better Dallas by training our members to be leaders and by providing valuable volunteer service hours and critical funding to area nonprofits. Now more than 5,000 women strong, JLD provides over 130,000 hours of trained volunteer service and donates more than $1 million to the community each year.
About Mary Kay
Irresistible products. Positive community impact. Rewarding opportunity. For 50 years, Mary Kay has offered it all. With 3 million Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultants and $3 billion in global annual wholesale sales, Mary Kay is a top beauty brand and direct seller in more than 35 markets around the world. To learn more or to locate a Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultant in your area, please visit marykay.com.