Augusta Preparatory Day School announced today that it was selected to receive a $2 million endowment to provide scholarships for gifted students with financial needs.

The endowment was awarded last week by the Malone Family Foundation, which was founded in 1997 to provide quality educational opportunities for gifted students lacking financial resources.

“We’ll be looking for those students who are gifted and in the top 5 percent of their class that demonstrate a financial need,” said Rebecca Blair, Augusta Prep’s director of advancement and finance.

The top 5 percent will be based on national averages and will be limited to pupils in the seventh through 12th grades, Ms. Blair said.

Officials at the Martinez private school intend to use interest accrued from the grant to eventually award as many as 10 scholarships each year. In the coming school year, the school likely will just award one scholarship from the endowment.

“We’re so excited by this,” Ms. Blair said. “It’s a great opportunity for students who never have dreamed of coming to Augusta Prep.”

Currently, the school earmarks 13 percent of its annual budget, between $700,000 and $800,000, for financial aid.

Ms. Blair believes the endowment will free up some of the school's financial aid funds because some students receiving the aid might qualify for the Malone Scholars Program.

Pupils interested in receiving information about the Malone Scholars Program should call Rosie Hermann, Augusta Prep's director of admissions, at (706) 863-1906 or at admissions@augustaprep.org.

Reach Donnie Fetter at (706) 863-6165 or donnie.fetter@augustachronicle.com