Volunteer for Vets Scholarship

Scholarship Sponsored by Pontius Tax Law, PLLC

We are thrilled to announce Joshua Elliot as the recipient of our 2024 scholarship! You can learn more about our past awardees here.

Pontius Tax Law, PLLC is a firm that takes immense pride in supporting U.S. Veterans. The company was founded by John Pontius, a Veteran himself, who is dedicated to honoring those who have served our nation. His legal career began in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps with the 1st Armored Division in Germany, and he was later deployed to Iraq. Additionally, Attorney Pontius has overseen the IRS-sponsored military Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program in Germany, where he led a team of eight and ensured the quality of over 2,000 federal and 700 state tax returns for military personnel.

Given Attorney Pontius’ strong connection to the military, he has chosen to establish a scholarship specifically for Veterans or children of Veterans. Pontius Tax Law recognizes the immense debt our country owes to Veterans for their service. We invite Veterans or their children to share their thoughts on how we can better support them as a community. We are also keen to understand how being a Veteran or a child of a Veteran has influenced your life and perspectives. The deadline for this $1,000 scholarship is November 30, 2025. If you are a Veteran or a child of a Veteran, we encourage you to apply!

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all those who have served and continue to serve our nation.

Scholarship Value: $1000

Eligibility Criteria

• The scholarship is available to any current high school senior, vocational student, college student, or graduate student who is a legal U.S. resident, living in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia, and enrolled in a vocational program or a two to four-year post-secondary institution.
• Employees of Pontius Tax Law, PLLC, their immediate family members (parent, child, sibling, and spouse), and individuals residing in the same household (whether related or not), are not eligible to participate in the competition.
• Applicants for this scholarship must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 or higher and be in good academic standing.

Application Process

• Applicants must complete the form below with all required information
• Applicants must submit an essay of 750-1,000 words responding to the prompt: How can we better support Veterans in our community? Please provide specific examples.
• Please be aware that all essays will be checked for AI writing. If AI-generated writing is detected, the application will be disqualified.
• Applicants must submit a professional resume detailing their academic and professional experience.
• Applicants must provide a transcript from their current school. First-year college students, graduate students, or individuals who have recently transferred schools may submit an unofficial transcript from their current institution, along with the most recent official transcript from their previous school. High school students may submit proof of acceptance to their college or university.
• Preference will be given to students either from or attending secondary school in the state.

The Volunteer For Vets Scholarship recipient will be selected in the month following the scholarship deadline.

For any scholarship-related questions, please use this contact form. Please note that we cannot respond to scholarship inquiries by phone.