Zakat Chicago Empowerment Scholarship (ZCES)

The objective of the Zakat Chicago Empowerment Scholarship (ZCES) Program is to enable Zakat-eligible Muslim students with a desire and potential to acquire or enhance their qualifications and thereby become financially self-sufficient but who lack financial resources to achieve their goals.

ZCES will support students who meet the scholarship criteria by awarding eligible students a multi-year scholarship until they complete their individual programs of study toward a certification or associate degree at City Colleges of Chicago, provided they continue to meet the following criteria:

- Maintains a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.5 (New students shall have a minimum cumulative high school GPA of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale)
- Enrolled in a minimum of six credit hours in a semester(s) towards the fulfillment of the requirements for the academic program for which the recipient is to receive the scholarship
- Self-identifies as a Muslim
- Must not own and possess savings or assets that exceed the Zakat eligibility limit
- Must qualify to receive a Pell Grant or a similar federal or state-sponsored grant program
- Must not be enrolled in any of the academic programs listed below:

1. Baking and Pastry Arts
2. Barbering
3. Bar Management
4. Cannabis Applied Studies
5. Cannabis Dispensary Operations Specialist
6. Cannabis Processing Technician
7. Cannabis Studies
8. Cosmetology
9. Culinary Arts
10. Dance
11. Mortuary Science
12. Music
13. Music Business
14. Music Education
15. Music Performance
16. Music Technology
17. Photography
18. Theater Art