MAKING IT POSSIBLE

Silas Farley
CSF Alumnus, former New York City Ballet dancer, choreographer, and dean of the Colburn School’s Trudl Zipper Dance Institute

Growing up in Charlotte, Silas Farley always dreamed of dancing with the New York City Ballet.

Photo: A FAMILY OF SCHOLARS
A FAMILY OF SCHOLARS

Growing up in Charlotte, Silas Farley always dreamed of dancing with the New York City Ballet.

The youngest of seven, Silas was homeschooled with the rest of his siblings until it became too difficult for his parents to manage. Fortunately, the Farleys learned about CSF-Charlotte, which awarded all of their children scholarships so they were able to enroll at local private schools, including Charlotte Christian School where Silas excelled in both academics and athletics. In fact, all of the Farley children thrived at their respective schools and several earned athletic scholarships to college, including Matthias, who played football at Notre Dame and is now with the Carolina Panthers.

SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM AND DANCE STUDIO

“I’m just so grateful. It would not have been possible without your help,” Falinda Farley, Silas’s mother, told CSF. “You put all these children through the best private schools in town. They’ve been able to get a tremendous education.”

With the support of his family and teachers, Silas flourished in the classroom and dance studio, eventually earning a full scholarship to the School of American Ballet and completing high school at the Professional Children’s School. He officially joined the Ballet one year after high school. In 2021, he became the dean of the Colburn School’s Trudl Zipper Dance Institute, and is currently an artist in residence at Southern Methodist University.

Photo: SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM AND DANCE STUDIO
Photo: A VILLAGE OF NURTURERS
A VILLAGE OF NURTURERS

“I knew from the time I was nine years old that I wanted to dance with the New York City Ballet. I’ve been incredibly blessed. I can’t imagine being who I am apart from the Children’s Scholarship Fund because CSF put me in the settings where a whole village of nurturers trained me to be the person I am.”

Photo Credits: Silas Farley, in class at the School of American Ballet. Photo © Rosalie O’Connor Photography (top photo); Children’s Scholarship Fund (2nd from top); Professional Children’s School (3rd from top), and Choreography George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust. Photo © Paul Kolnik (bottom photo).

MEASURING SUCCESS

MORE THAN $1 BILLION IN SCHOLARSHIPS SINCE 1998

Since 1998, CSF has provided scholarships worth more than $1 billion, changing the lives of 209,736 children.

OMAHA HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION RATE

CSF Omaha reports that its recipients have a 99.5 percent high school graduation rate, and a college entrance rate of 84 percent.  [Source: CSF Omaha Website]

PHILADELPHIA STUDY RESULTS

CSF Philadelphia finds that 98 percent of CSF eighth graders graduate high school on time –and 70 percent enroll in some form of post-secondary education within one year following their high school graduation. [Source]

THE BASIC FUND RESULTS

The BASIC Fund, CSF’s partner program in the San Francisco Bay Area, reports a 98 percent on-time high school graduation rate for BASIC Fund alumni, and a 53 percent college graduation rate, compared with 11 percent for low-income students nationally.  [Source]

ACE SCHOLARSHIPS RESULTS

CSF’s Denver partner program, ACE Scholarships, reports that more than 90 percent of its scholarship recipients graduate high school on time. [Source: ACE Scholarships Annual Report, 2012]

St LOUIS RESULTS

In St. Louis, 99 percent of CSF partner program Today and Tomorrow Educational Foundation’s alumni have graduated from high school, and 87 percent have attended college. [Source: Northwest Ohio Scholarship Fund Website]

A HIGHER ON TIME GRADUATION RATE

In New York City, 96.2 percent of CSF alumni responding to our alumni survey graduated high school on time in 2023, compared to the most recent average NYC public school graduation rate of 83.7 percent. [Source: CSF Alumni Survey Data, 2023]

BALTIMORE STUDY RESULTS

CSF Baltimore finds that its scholarship alumni have a 97 percent graduation rate and 84 percent enroll in college.  [Source: CSF Baltimore Website]