Brian Sheth’s Scholarship Fund Awards $500,000 to 20 Deserving Students

The high cost of higher education can be an insurmountable hurdle for some of the best and brightest young minds out there. Self-made billionaire Brian Sheth has removed that obstacle for 20 top Texas students through the Sheth Sangreal Scholarship Fund.

“With rising costs of college tuition and the potential burden of student debt, pursuing a college degree is out of reach for so many students in our region,” said Brian Sheth. “With the Sheth Sangreal Scholarship Fund, we are investing in the leaders of tomorrow by providing a pathway for young adults, regardless of their background or financial status, to reach their educational dreams. We are proud to support and empower the 20 Central Texas students selected for this year’s scholarship awards.”

A four-year public university in Texas costs, on average, $18,711 per year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. A private four-year institution in Texas costs an average of $48,032. But that’s not something Sheth’s students have to worry about.

Founded in 2022, the Sheth Sangreal Scholarship Fund provides financial aid to outstanding students in Central Texas. Each of the 20 recipients will receive $25,000 to further their education.

Brian Sheth, Billionaire Philanthropist

Sheth and his wife, Adria, created the Sheth Sangreal Foundation “For our planet, our children and our well-being … We ensure that no one stands alone while protecting life in a changing world,” according to its website. Sheth’s first foray into doing good was the conservation-centric Earth Alliance. It was formed to protect the planet’s ecosystems on the premise that life on Earth is threatened by a growing climate crisis and biodiversity loss. He’s also involved with Re:wild (formerly Global Wildlife Foundation).

Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio is on the Re:wild team, along with respected conservation scientists banding together with “Indigenous peoples, local communities, influential leaders, nongovernmental organizations, governments, companies and the public to protect and rewild at the scale and speed we need. Our vital work has protected and conserved more than 180 million acres benefiting more than 16,000 species in the world’s most irreplaceable places for biodiversity,” according to Re:wild’s website.

Brian Sheth, Local Hero

Sheth also devotes a great deal of energy to local issues in Austin, Texas. A multimillion-dollar campus was built for the Boys & Girls Club of the Austin Area with grants from the Sheth Sangreal Foundation. The foundation has provided learning programs and advancement opportunities to more than 120,000 children worldwide.

Recently, poverty among children has increased significantly in the city, preventing them from reaching their full potential as productive, responsible, and caring citizens. 

“Adria and I know that supporting Boys & Girls Clubs of the Austin Area is more than charity,” Sheth said. “It’s an investment in our community’s most precious resource, with unlimited potential returns.”

A Life-Changing Opportunity for Students

Now, 20 college-bound go-getters are the beneficiaries of Brian Sheth’s benevolence. All of the Sheth Sangreal scholarship recipients attended high schools in Central Texas. Most (70%) of the students are female, 65% are first-generation college students, and 90% are people of color. 

Awards are announced in the spring following the fall deadline for scholarship applications.

Antonio Macedo Gonzalez will attend the University of Texas at Austin after graduating from Austin Achieve High School. 

“Throughout my whole life, financial stability has been a harsh obstacle my family and I have had to face,” Gonzalez said. “Once I received this scholarship, everything changed for the better. I can put all of my attention on becoming an accountant and helping lower-income communities achieve financial stability. For that, I cannot thank you enough. You have changed the trajectory of my life.”

Lamisa Mahmud, a graduate of Pflugerville High School, will attend Harvard University this fall. Using the scholarship, she said she hopes to complete her Harvard education and realize her dream of becoming a pediatric psychiatrist.

“This scholarship will help me pay for my education at Harvard and achieve the dreams I’ve worked so hard for,” she said. “Also, instead of working long hours and worrying about student debt, I’ll be able to devote more time to the challenging course load that accompanies my desired major, neuroscience, to take advantage of all my resources. Receiving this scholarship serves as the helping hand I need to achieve my goals, something that will greatly ease my stress during college.”