Welcome to the Pitzer Family Education Foundation (PFEF)
PFEF is a 501c3 non-profit that provides scholarship and financial aid opportunities to children of the incarcerated and individuals released from prison on parole to enroll in college, trade school and trade certificate courses. Interested students can click on the application tab on this website, complete the application and mail to PFEF 6545 Calder Ave, Beaumont, Texas 77706.
Our experience is that most of the incarcerated care about their children and want to take part in their success by donating. We also believe that involving current inmates contributes to the development of their pro-social values which will assist them in their successful reentry.
Our mission is to have partnerships with all Federal, State and City Department of Corrections. We need your support so if you are a state who would like to partner with PFEF and help stop second generational crime, please contact Percy Pitzer, Co-Founder at (409) 284-4155, Anthony Haynes, Executive Director at (409) 730-3247 and Marsha Pitzer-Rivera at (409) 861-2536.
Qualified applicants are placed on a waiting list and can receive a scholarship award when funding is available in the state where the parent is incarcerated. We ordinarily issue scholarships each year in August.
National Children of the Incarcerated (CIPs) Scholarship Program
On any given day, an estimated 2.2 million children in America have at least one parent in jail or prison.
The loss of a parent to incarceration can have a significant psychological impact on a child, affect their care and create financial hardship. These children are too often forced to give up their dreams and future due to the bad choices made by their parent(s), not through any fault of their own.
Research has shown that CIPs are five times more likely to end up in prison themselves than their peers. Many CIPs have a desire to better themselves and be law abiding citizens. Our mission is to support that desire and break the cycle of generational incarceration through education.
Incarcerated in 14 state department of corrections have donated to Pitzer Family Education Foundation and to date have donated over $244,000 towards scholarships and financial aid for their kids to attend college or trade school. To date, we have provided over 190 scholarships to CIPs nation-wide to attend post-secondary school to support their dreams of a successful adulthood and invest in education over incarceration. PFEF staff assist CIPs with their financial aid applications so that the combination of the PFEF scholarship and financial aid provides the resources for them to be successful students.
PFEF also provides opportunities for ex-offenders and at-risk young adults to return or continue higher education in targeted communities of southeast Texas communities.
PFEF has partnered with Lamar State College Port Arthur and Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Training Academy, in Nederland, Texas. This program provides the opportunity for parolees to obtain a trade certificate in the following courses: Welding, Core Safety, Instrumentation, Scaffold Builder, Industrial Carpentry, Electrical and Pipefitting. PFEF has awarded financial aid over 1,194 times for parolee students’ enrollment at ABC Training Academy in Nederland, Texas.
THIS PROGRAM IS NOT FUNDED WITH OFFENDER DONATIONS, ITS FUNDED BY A GRANT SOURCE!