Elementary Scholarship Criteria

1. Read through all the general application requirements listed below. Students who do not meet ALL the necessary requirements will not be considered for the scholarship and need not apply. Only qualifying applications will be reviewed. Our FAQ’s provide additional information on how to navigate the application process.

FOR ALL APPLICANTS:

• Before beginning, parents should collect and have readily available:
  • A copy of your child’s baptismal certificate
  • Contact information for your child’s current principal
  • Contact information for the principal of the school your child hopes to attend
  • A person identified who knows your child well (either the principal, guidance counselor, or current teacher) who will fill out the  evaluation  portion of the application, along with their contact information.
  • Parents should download the following form, complete the top portion, and submit the form to their registered parish for completion.  Once the completed form is returned to the parent or guardian, it can be uploaded with the application.  The form must be dated no earlier than January 5, 2026.  We will not accept the form from the parish, it must be uploaded as part of the application.  To download the Parish Verification Form, click here.

TO BEGIN THE PROCESS:

• Parents may begin their child’s application by accessing the portal beginning on Wednesday, January 28th, 2026. Parents are welcome to return to the application as often as needed, while it is in draft form, to complete it before final submission.  Should any additional material be required, the Knott Scholarship Office will notify the applicant and re-open the application if necessary.
• There is an essay component for the application. Once you have begun your application, you will see the essay prompt. That essay must be submitted in your child’s own legible handwriting.
• As soon as the application is submitted, the principal and/or reference is notified that they have an application pending. The Knott Scholarship Funds Office will inform you when all portions of the application are received. You will be notified when the evaluation is submitted. The application can be submitted before the evaluation is received and it will automatically upload to our application.

For Students currently enrolled in Archdiocesan Schools:

• It is the responsibility of the principal to upload all required information regarding the student before the deadline if they are designated the reference/evaluator. If the principal is not the designated reference/evaluator, it is the responsibility of that person to fill out the reference form and submit it before the deadline.
• Grades and test scores will be supplied by the Archdiocese directly to the Knott Scholarship Funds offices.  The principal does not have to input any grades or test scores.

For Students who are not currently enrolled in an Archdiocesan School:

• Non-Archdiocesan schools include Independent Catholic, Private, Public, or Home School. For these applicants,  is the responsibility of the principal to upload all requested information and documentation to the application before the deadline. This will include grades, converted into numerical values if needed, for the last grading period of 3rd grade and the first grading period of 4th grade. If chosen as the reference/evaluator, the principal must complete that portion of the application as well. If the principal is not the designated reference/evaluator, it is the responsibility of the reference to fill out the reference form and submit it before the deadline.
• For public schools, the grade conversion may have to be accomplished by the guidance office. It is suggested you reach out to them as well at this time.
• For home school students, please click here for additional information.
• Completed applications are submitted to the Knott Scholarship Funds office for evaluation.
• Announcement of Knott Scholarship Funds Awardees will be made around  April 14, 2026

GEOGRAPHY
The student and family must reside in, be registered in a Catholic parish, and have applied for admission into the fifth grade at a Catholic parish elementary school in one of the following geographic areas:

Anne Arundel County
Baltimore City
Baltimore County
Carroll County
Frederick County
Harford County
Howard County

AGE
The student must be in the fourth grade at the time of application. The student may be currently attending a Catholic elementary school, a public school, a private school, or home school.

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION AND PARISH VERIFICATION
The student must be a baptized Catholic or convert officially into the Catholic Church by a priest. The baptismal certificate, as well as the Parish Verification Form, will need to be submitted with the application.

To download the Parish Verification Form (if you have not done so already), click here.

TEST SCORES
For students who are currently enrolled in an Archdiocesan school:

The student must have scored in the 92nd percentile or above in each section of the MAP Assessment administered in an Archdiocesan Catholic school. The sections considered are listed below. We accept scores from the Grade 4 January test only. No other standardized test scores will be considered.

Reading
Language Usage
Math

For students who are not currently enrolled in an Archdiocesan school:

The student must have scored in the 92nd percentile or above in each section of the MAP Assessment administered in an Archdiocesan Catholic school. The sections considered are listed below. We accept scores from the Grade 4 January test only. MAP testing must take place at a Archdiocesan school for the results to be accepted. No other standardized test scores will be considered. For Knott Scholarship Funds consideration, the entire battery of MAP tests must be taken, not a shortened version for admission purposes.

Notes about additional testing:
Private testing results will ONLY be accepted in either of the following two scenarios:

1. If the student is absent from school and misses one or more sections of the test, the parent must:
   • Present proof of the absence in the form of a letter from the principal stating that the student missed a portion of the test.
   • Arrange for the student to be retested, at their current school, in all the required areas. All test results must come from the same test.
2. If the student attends a private, public, or home school, they may be tested privately.
   • The student may be tested only once and those results are the only results that will be accepted.
   • Please contact the school your child is interested in attending to register for a MAP Assessment. There will be a fee of $25, payable to the host school, for test administration. The host school may waive the fee at their discretion.

GRADES
The student’s last third grade report card (last quarter or trimester) and first quarter (or trimester) report card grade for fourth grade must be a minimum numeric grade of 93 in each of the following areas:

Reading/Literature/English/Language Arts
Social Studies
Mathematics
Science

Notes about grades:

• If any grade for the above subjects is below 93, the student is not eligible to apply.
• If the student’s school gives individual grades in Language Arts subjects, each subject must meet the minimum 93 standard.
• If the student’s grading system does not supply numeric grades, a conversion by the school is required along with an official transcript.

1. Confirmation of admission to a Catholic school must be included in the Knott Scholarship Funds application when submitted.
2. Students exempt from tuition due to a parent’s employment by the school or parish are eligible to apply. Scholarship payments must be applied to that student’s tuition. The school has the discretion to apply its exemption to other expenses.
3. Students are ranked according to the data submitted. We do not accept, nor do we read, letters of recommendation or support.
4. ‘Eligibility for a Knott Scholarship’ means initial eligibility. Qualified students will fall into the range of many other high achieving students. Meeting initial eligibility criteria does not mean a student will receive a scholarship.
5. By applying for a Knott Scholarship, the applicant understands that grades and test scores will be supplied to the Knott Scholarship Funds office by their current school or the Archdioceses of Baltimore.
6. BY APPLYING FOR A KNOTT SCHOLARSHIP, STUDENTS, PARENTS, GUARDIANS AND SCHOOL PERSONNEL AGREE THAT ALL INFORMATION RECEIVED BY THE KNOTT SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS, REGARDING GRADES, TEST SCORE, EVALUATION, OR TAX RETURNS, FROM ANY SOURCE, IS STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL AND WILL NOT BE DISCLOSED OR DISCUSSED WITH ANYONE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: APPLICANTS, PARENTS, GUARDIANS OR SCHOOL PERSONNEL. ALL DECISIONS ARE FINAL.

Knott Scholarships are based primarily on outstanding academic achievement. However, a small amount of consideration may be given for extreme financial need. The applicant must meet all requirements stated above, including all academic requirements, before financial need is considered.

To determine eligibility for this consideration we use FACTS. A link to the FACTS form and the code you will need to use it are embedded in the portal application.

Tax information may be required ONLY IF you have submitted information through FACTS. If you are not asking for financial need consideration, no tax information will be required. The Knott Scholarship Fund office reserves the right to request copies of your latest Federal Income Tax return, including all schedules if used.

The portal will be open for applications beginning January 28, 2026.

All completed elementary scholarship applications must be submitted to our office no later than 5:00 pm on Friday, March 6th, 2026. Applications received after this deadline will not be processed regardless of the reason for the delay.

Public announcement of results will be on or about April 14, 2026

• Catholic or officially converted
• Reside in and attend Catholic parish school in designated counties in the Archdiocese of Baltimore
• Minimum Score in the 92nd percentile for the MAP Assessment in each category: Reading, Math, and Language Usage
• Grades a minimum of 93 in Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, and
• Science for both marking periods
• Submitted evaluation/reference.
• Submitted Parish Verification Form
• Essay – details of which are located in the application

The portal will open on January 28th, 2026 and close on March 6th, 2026.

1. Newly designated Scholars will be required to attend the Knott Scholarship Pinning Ceremony which will be held on Sunday, April 26, 2026. This year’s ceremony will take place at  St. Joseph Fullerton Church 8420 Belair Road Baltimore, MD. 21236. Additional details to follow. If a student is not available to attend the Pinning Ceremony, the scholarship will not be awarded. Additional details to follow.
2. Once awarded, students, parents, guardians, and school personnel understand that ongoing grade reports will be supplied to the Knott Scholarship Funds office directly by the school to monitor a scholar’s progress for the entire four years of the scholarship.
3. Students will be required to complete an annual “Scholar Profile” survey and keep their contact information up to date to maintain the scholarship.
4. Knott Scholars are required to attend annual events (service, networking, etc.) sponsored by the Knott Scholarship Funds office to maintain their scholarship.
5. Scholarship awards are non-transferable.  The student must attend the school to which he or she listed in the application.
6. Students, and their parent or guardian, will be asked to complete a form acknowledging the conditions above. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the forfeiture of the scholarship.

All applications will be received through the application portal, which can be accessed via the APPLY button.