SALISBURY — PFLAG Salisbury Rowan announced it will be offering Scholarships to Rowan County students who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, non binary or as a straight ally, for academic year 2023-2024. 

According to PFLAG’s website, the organization used to stand for Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays and was later extended to Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, before officially branding as simply PFLAG in 2014.

Founded in 1973 by mothers and fathers of gay and lesbian children, PFLAG has more than 325,000 members in more than 400 chapters throughout the United States, including 16 North Carolina chapters. 

The local PFLAG Salisbury Rowan chapter was founded in January 2006 and was the first organization in North Carolina to award scholarships specifically to LGBTQ+ persons and their straight allies. In the 17 years since its inception in 2007, the Salisbury Rowan PFLAG Scholarship Foundation has awarded 103 $1,000 scholarships to deserving Rowan County students. 

“The scholarships are offered to all Rowan County public, private and home schooled seniors as well as RCCC Early College students,” Scholarship Advisory Committee Chair Angel Barber said. “It is thanks to the generosity of our committed benefactors and supporters, that PFLAG Salisbury Rowan is able to offer these scholarships.”

Barber noted that the “scholarships are unique in that students do not have to be attending a traditional four year college to apply,” adding, “We encourage anyone planning to attend a community college or trade school, including cosmetology or culinary school for example, to apply for one of our scholarships.”

Updated scholarship applications will be available soon on the PFLAG Salisbury Rowan website www.salisburyrowanpflag.org and are currently on the Facebook page as well as Salisbury Pride website at www.salisburypride.com and Facebook page.

If you have questions or concerns, contact Barber at salisburypflag@gmail.com.