2026 Scholarships
The scholarship application window for 2026 has closed.
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Please contact support@calbalclassic.com with any questions.
Scholarships at California Balboa Classic
Pacific Swing Dance Foundation (PSDF) and CalBal are dedicated to providing opportunities for dancers from historically marginalized backgrounds to attend and participate in events like California Balboa Classic.
The PSDF scholarship program opens the doors to the vibrant world of swing dance events, striving for inclusivity for all. CalBal is contributing a select number of scholarships, encompassing Full Ride, Travel, and Pass Only Scholarships. Join us in fueling this mission by contributing to our scholarship program. With a full ride scholarship cost of $1000, our goal is to award four full scholarships. Your support has the potential to extend a scholarship opportunity to even more deserving recipients, amplifying the impact of our collective dance community
Goals
Every year, our goals are necessarily constrained by the size of our budget. That’s why the charitable support of PSDF Patrons is essential to the program.
For CalBal 2026, we hope to grant a minimum of two full scholarships, 8 travel scholarships and 10 full pass scholarships. We estimate the budget to be over $12,000, including the cost of donated registration fees.
August 20, 2025: Scholarship applications open.
September 5, 2025: Deadline to apply.
September 24, 2025: Scholarship applicants receive notification of their approval status.
Note: Notification dates are sometimes subject to change, but we will keep all applicants informed of such changes.
Full Scholarship
- Full weekend pass to CalBal 2026
- Free entry to any competitions
- Access to a shared hotel room (with own bed)
- Meals covered
- Up to $400 travel stipend
Travel Scholarship
- Full weekend pass to CalBal 2026
- Free entry to any competitions
- Up to $400 travel/expense stipend
Pass Only Scholarship
- Full weekend pass to CalBal 2026
- Free entry to any competitions
Pacific Swing Dance Foundation Scholarship Program Mission Statement
The PSDF scholarship program is committed to helping dancers who have been disproportionately affected by discrimination and structural inequalities in society to fully participate in swing dance culture, to include attending swing dance events.
Barriers to participation are often related to factors such as race and ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, social class, income level, disability status, and age. However, this list is not exhaustive and the scholarship committee recognizes that dancers have unique lived experiences of inequality that may involve a combination of these and other factors.
The scholarship committee will fulfill this commitment to helping dancers by providing monetary support, opportunities for community and networking, and additional guidance during the event as requested by scholarship recipients.
Scholarship Selection Process
The scholarship application consists of three sections:
- Section 1 collects applicants’ names and contact information.
- Section 2 collects information to help determine scholarship eligibility, including what level of scholarship might be best suited to each applicant.
- Section 3 helps PSDF improve future programming and has no bearing on the selection process.
Applications are reviewed for eligibility by a scholarship committee that consists of the event organizer as well as members of the swing dance community from diverse backgrounds. We expect most applicants to be eligible; please read our mission statement for clarification.
The scholarship committee will award a limited number of scholarships outright to particularly deserving applicants based on committee consensus. They will award the remaining scholarships via a lottery from the pool of remaining eligible applicants at each requested level of support.
Because it is important that participation in swing dancing remain accessible to dancers who are unable to afford the overall costs of large events, the event organizer will temporarily reserve some accessibly priced event tickets for purchase by applicants who are not awarded a scholarship.
The scholarship selection process can change over time to reflect changing needs and goals. PSDF is committed to remaining open about such changes.