It can feel like looking for a needle in haystack, or Waldo in ancient Egypt while the pyramids are under construction. A student wanders aimlessly across campus looking for financial help. Students need money to help pay for books, classes or rent.

Money is available, and not just from government loans. The Channels reported that The Foundation for Santa Barbara City College has more than $500,000 in scholarship money available. This is an enormous amount of money, and it’s all for us, the students.

The Channels Editorial Board appreciates the hard work from everyone who makes this money available to students, today and tomorrow. However, we believe the program would benefit from easier access to the application and better advertising.

It is not easy to find out about the scholarships or where to apply. The link to the application home page is located on Pipeline, under the “School Services” tab. Then click on “SBCC Scholarship application.” Unfortunately, the link cannot be found on the City College website, only on Pipeline and not all students use this resource.

The road map to money is a little rough, but this pot of gold is not elusive. Out of the 895 students who applied for scholarships last year, there were 497 of them who received one. That’s more than half. That means your chances of receiving a scholarship are better than one in two. Anybody playing the poker craze these days would take that bet.

The deadline for scholarship applications is in March. But classes created to help you fill out your application begin in January. So you can view the scholarship list from last year, which will give you a pretty good idea of what’s available. And, a lot is available. It will not hurt to start looking it over now.

The Scholarship Foundation is another program mentioned in the application information packet. This program offers money to present and past graduates of local high schools. If you attended a Santa Barbara County high school, at least seventh through twelfth grade, this can also be a financial resource for you.

The Foundation does try to let students know the money is available, but the whole thing needs better advertising. The City College marketing department puts out all the information for the college’s financial aid, but it is separate from Foundation money.

It is not always about the money though. Confidence and self-esteem also increase when a student is awarded a scholarship. It can make he or she feel good about the hard work they are putting into school. Sometimes the recognition matters more than the reward.

The scholarship money provided by the Foundation could really help improve student success. Students would certainly benefit. They need more money to get along in this high cost of living neighborhood we know as Santa Barbara. Let’s take the time to let them know about all the scholarships that could really help them out. Spread the word!