The Mary Cecile Chambers Scholarship Trust was established through the generosity of Mary Cecile Chambers. Its mission is to benefit deserving young men in the state of Texas “who seek to obtain such education and vocational training as will better enable them to develop their skills and prepare them for gainful employment.”

Scholarship recipients are selected based on good character, industrious qualities,…a desire to work and learn, scholastic achievement, test scores, school and community involvement, and demonstrable financial need.

Mary Cecile Chambers was born in 1887 in Turtle Bayou, Texas, to Landon Gore Chambers and Charcilla Van Pradelles. She was the last of four children born to Mr. and Mrs. Chambers. Their first child, William Morton Chambers (1875-1878), died at the age of three; their second child, Albert Chambers (1882-1901), died at the age of 19; their third child, Robert White Chambers (1884-1958), died at the age of 74; baby sister Mary Cecile lived to be 83 years old.

In 1905, Miss Chambers, a stenographer by trade, purchased a home in Galveston at 1520 Market. The house is now known as the Grover-Chambers House; George Grover was the original owner of the house which he built in 1859. In the application for a Historical Marker, there is mention of a Lar oak tree on the property, which is considered the oldest on Galveston Island.

In 1969, a year before her death, Miss Chambers drew up her Last Will and Testament. In it, she bequeathed various sums of money to five cousins. She also bequeathed money to the Roman Catholic Bishop of Beaumont, TX, to be used for the benefit of Our Lady of Light Catholic Church in Anahuac, TX. The remainder of her estate was used to establish the Mary Cecile Chambers Scholarship Fund; she appointed Moody National Bank of Galveston as Trustee to administer the Scholarship Fund. Miss Chambers was clear in her wish to provide young men a higher education or vocational training to better their chances at gainful employment. She was just as clear that “intellectual as represented by high grades nor poverty shall be paramount qualifications to receiving a scholarship but rather the probability of practical benefit, taking into consideration good character, industrious qualities, and a desire to work and learn (and particularly a wholesome and positive attitude toward work) as well as general ability and financial need.” Additionally, it was her “earnest hope and desire” that the young men who benefit from this scholarship fund will voluntarily be willing to do for others what has been done for them, so that the work of the Fund may be carried on and enlarged.

Miss Chambers died in 1970 at the age of 83. She is buried in the Wallisville Cemetery in Chambers County, at the foot of her mother’s grave.

Applications will start being accepted on January 1st, 2025

The Mary Cecile Chambers Scholarship is renewable for up to four years, or until a Bachelor’s Degree is obtained, if earlier, provided that student recipients continue to satisfy the scholarship’s terms and conditions. Scholarship awards pay a minimum of $2,500 per semester (Spring and Fall semesters only) towards a student’s tuition, fees, books, supplies, and on campus housing costs, and are mailed directly to the college or university or educational institution (no refunds or monies are to be issued to the student).

BASIC ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

1. Applicant must be a male student residing in the State of Texas (as such residency is defined in the Application Information, Instructions, and Terms and Conditions document that may be found in the link to the scholarship application below).
2. Applicant must have a minimum grade point average of 75 (C).
3. Applicant must not have a criminal record (excepting minor traffic violations).
4. Applicant (or any immediate family member, or any person in the same household) must not be an employee or director of Moody National Bank.
5. If the applicant attends college, vocational or trade school and maintains 9 or more hours each Spring and Fall semester and a 2.50 Cumulative GPA, an awarded scholarship may be renewable for a maximum of 4 years, or until a Bachelor’s degree is achieved if earlier. If GPA falls below 2.50 in a semester, the student will be in probation status. If GPA is below 2.50 for 2 consecutive semesters, or if the student does not maintain 9 or more hours in any Spring or Fall semester, any scholarship may be withdrawn at the discretion of the scholarship committee, in which case no further scholarship payments will be made. After any withdrawal of a scholarship, the student may re-apply for the scholarship during the first calendar quarter of the following year. Any re-application will also require that the student write and submit a letter (at least 200 words) explaining his grades, or his failure to maintain 9 hours, and his plan for personal improvement.

APPLICATION

Please download and complete the application form below.
MCC Application 2025 Word Docx

If you having troubling viewing / downloading the Word document of the application, please use the PDF link below
MCC Application 2025 PDF

2025 scholarship applications will be accepted beginning January 1, 2025.
They can be scanned and sent to admin@marycecilechambersscholarship.org or mailed to ATTN: Claire Wilkins, Scholarship Supervisor, 1319 24th St. Galveston, TX 77550. See application for details. Your school or local library will be able to assist you with scanning your completed application to create an email-able document. Accepted file types are Doc and PDF. If you have difficulty emailing your documents, please contact Claire Wilkins, Scholarship Supervisor at 409.539.1953.

Be sure to attach your documents to the email and include your name, email address, best phone number to reach you at, student’s full name, and the student’s high school in the email message.

SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT CONFIRMATION FORM

All scholarship recipients must download, complete and return the following form below.
Click Here to Open and Print the Mary Cecile Chambers Scholarship Confirmation

Scholarship Confirmation forms can be uploaded below.