Denny's Hungry for Education -- Year Two

Denny’s is back for year two of its Hungry for Education (HFE) scholarship program and once again, Versaic is the engine behind the scenes. We’re making sure that it’s simple for students from high school through college to submit applications and equally simple for the Denny’s team to manage the entire process. The HFE program was so successful last year that America’s Diner has quadrupled its investment in the program, going nation-wide with the initiative and partnering with a broader group of non-profit minority advocacy organizations. This year, the AAA Scholarship Foundation, Magic Johnson Foundation and United States Hispanic Leadership Institute join Denny’s partners from last year — Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, Step Up For Students, Urban League of the Upstate, U.S. Pan Asian Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation,  and The Tom Joyner Foundation.

The Versaic platform enables applicants to create accounts, fill out applications for the appropriate organizations and submit essays outlining their creative ideas for ending childhood hunger- a mission that is close to Denny’s heart, as articulated by Denny’s Chief Brand Officer Frances Allen. “Our Hungry for Education program allows us to help some of our younger guests access higher education and provides us the opportunity to continue to raise awareness of childhood hunger in the United States. We look forward to reviewing this year’s applications and identifying solutions Denny’s can implement to fight hunger in our local communities.”  Well said, Frances.  The problem of childhood hungers needs the spotlight that leading companies like Denny’s can shine on it.

The Denny’s HFE program is near and dear to Versaic since it was the first time a client used the Versaic system to implement a scholarship program.  We’ve teamed closely with April Kelly-Drummond, director of corporate diversity for Denny’s, on implementing the program and she’s given the Versaic team kudos for our consultative approach and fast turnaround on Denny’s priorities.  Taking complicated processes and making them simple is a Versaic sweet spot and that’s what April — and Denny’s — needed from us. We’re excited to be part of a process that connects young people with valuable scholarship dollars and at the same time, bring to the fore new ideas for tackling one of our most pressing problems, childhood hunger.