Transgender Day of Empowerment

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Donate to Empower Trans Students

San Diego Pride is the proud fiscal sponsor of Trans Day of Empowerment and the Tracie Jada O’Brien Trans Student Scholarship Fund that ensures 100% of donations go directly to this vital programming.

Your tax deductible charitable donation will support the Tracie Jada O’Brien Trans* Student Scholarship Fund, which annually awards scholarships to transgender, non-binary and gender-diverse students in higher educational programs from or residing in San Diego County.

2026 Transgender Day of Empowerment (TDOE) Scholarship Application Now Open

San Diego Pride is proud to announce that the 2026 Transgender Day of Empowerment (TDOE) Scholarship Application is now live.

This scholarship is open to students from or residing in San Diego County who identify as transgender, live outside of the gender binary, and/or are in the process of transitioning their gender.

As funds permit, the TDOE Scholarship Fund will award 20 scholarships of $500 each to students who are beginning or continuing their education in:

2-year colleges

4-year colleges or universities

Technical schools

Graduate programs

Vocational training programs

📅 Application Deadline: Friday, March 6, 2026

🏳️‍⚧️ Scholarships will be awarded:

Friday, April 3, 2026 at the 20th Annual Transgender Day of Empowerment celebration at the San Diego LGBT Community Center (3909 Centre St, San Diego, CA 92103).

Eligibility & Requirements

Applicants must:

Complete the full application form.

Submit a 250-word essay answering:

What is your study focus area and how did you become interested in this particular field of study?

Upload proof of acceptance to or enrollment in the educational institution where you plan to study or currently attend. Files should be labeled:

“<Your Name> Proof of Enrollment/Acceptance TDOE”

Applications missing required documentation will be considered ineligible.

Applicants may apply for up to four consecutive years. After receiving funding for a fourth year, awardees will no longer be eligible.

All applications will be reviewed using established objective criteria, including financial need, written essay quality, and demonstrated academic promise. All committee decisions are final. If you were not selected in previous years, we strongly encourage you to apply again.

Apply Now

👉 Access the 2026 TDOE Scholarship Application Here:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScybF9iGygccdz_C9W6y84YEjltcfHsfXprRsD0fHRk_pYHxw/viewform

For questions, please email [email protected]

with the subject line:

“<Your Name> TDOE Scholarship Question”

Solicitud de la Beca 2026 del Día de Empoderamiento Transgénero (TDOE) Ya Está Disponible

San Diego Pride se enorgullece en anunciar que la solicitud para la Beca 2026 del Día de Empoderamiento Transgénero (TDOE) ya está abierta.

Esta beca está dirigida a estudiantes que viven o son residentes del Condado de San Diego y que se identifican como personas transgénero, viven fuera del binario de género y/o están en proceso de transición de género.

Según lo permitan los fondos disponibles, el Fondo de Becas TDOE otorgará 20 becas de $500 cada una a estudiantes que comenzarán o continuarán su educación en:

Universidades de 2 años

Universidades de 4 años

Escuelas técnicas

Programas de posgrado

Programas de formación vocacional

📅 Fecha límite para aplicar: viernes 6 de marzo de 2026

🏳️‍⚧️ Las becas se entregarán:

Viernes 3 de abril de 2026 durante el 20º Día Anual de Empoderamiento Transgénero en el Centro Comunitario LGBT de San Diego (3909 Centre St, San Diego, CA 92103).

Elegibilidad y Requisitos

Todos los solicitantes deben:

Completar la solicitud en su totalidad.

Presentar un ensayo de 250 palabras que responda a la pregunta:

¿Cuál es su área de enfoque académico y cómo se interesó en este campo de estudio en particular?

Adjuntar prueba de aceptación o inscripción en la institución educativa donde planea estudiar o actualmente estudia. Los archivos deben etiquetarse como:

“<Su Nombre> Prueba de Inscripción/Aceptación TDOE”

Las solicitudes incompletas o que no incluyan la documentación requerida serán consideradas inelegibles.

Los solicitantes pueden aplicar hasta por cuatro años consecutivos. Después de recibir financiamiento por cuarto año, ya no serán elegibles.

Todas las solicitudes serán evaluadas conforme a criterios objetivos establecidos, incluyendo necesidad financiera demostrada, calidad del ensayo escrito y potencial académico. Todas las decisiones del comité son definitivas. Si no fue seleccionado/a en años anteriores, le animamos a volver a aplicar.

Aplique Ahora

👉 Acceda a la Solicitud de la Beca TDOE 2026 aquí:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScybF9iGygccdz_C9W6y84YEjltcfHsfXprRsD0fHRk_pYHxw/viewform

Si tiene preguntas, envíe un correo electrónico a [email protected]

con el asunto:

“<Su Nombre> Pregunta Beca TDOE”

Apply Here!

Thank you to our 2024 sponsors!

Tracie Jada Obrien, a black trans woman, with blond hair and a black feather dress

Tracie Jada O'Brien

Learn more about the founder, Tracie Jada O’Brien.

Learn more
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Why Do We Focus on Transgender Students?

A national school climate survey by GLSEN showed that found that 75% of transgender youth feel unsafe at school, and those who are able to persevere had significantly lower GPAs, were more likely to miss school and were less likely to plan on continuing their education.

The scholarship fund is one of the first scholarships of its kind focused on transgender student success in San Diego. We believe that strong community support can give our local transgender students the confidence to beat the odds. Our volunteer-led committee has been able to distribute scholarships totaling $48,000 to local transgender students over the past 6 years. We are proud to report that their average GPA was 3.5. Our students are studying law, medicine, social work, psychology, and more. They are attending schools as close as City College and SDSU to as far away as the University of Chicago and Harvard University!

Have questions? Contact us at [email protected].

Thank you for giving these high-achieving students your support!