El Dorado Promise

A unique scholarship program established and funded by Murphy Oil Corporation

The Promise

The El Dorado Promise Scholarship was established by Murphy Oil Corporation 18 years ago. Currently, the scholarship continues to provide full tuition and mandatory fees at any regionally accredited two-or four-year post-secondary institution. In 2024, the Promise scholarship expanded to fund vocational and technical certifications or degrees at South Arkansas College, further broadening opportunities for students pursuing career and technical education.

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Benefit for K-12

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Promise-eligible participants

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The Promise Has Taken Them There

When EHS graduates think about their future and where they want to be, they know they have the Promise to help get them on that path. The Promise can take them where they want to go. In fact, the Promise has taken the 4,885 Promise recipients to 207 different colleges and universities in 39 different states

College Links

I love the Promise because…

K-12 El Dorado School District students were asked why they loved the Promise. They responded with essays and artwork.

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“With the Promise I know I can not only go to college, but I can go to the college of my choice.”
-Emme Landes, El Dorado High School

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Jenna Roblee, El Dorado High School

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“To me, the El Dorado Promise is a chance. It’s a chance to go to college to be whatever I want to be. The promise has granted me a chance to be my dream, a speech pathologist.”
-Reaves Robinson, El Dorado High School

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Avrey Davison, Washington Middle School
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Kate Vernon, El Dorado High School
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“The Promise allows me to reach for the stars and to follow my dreams.”
– Hannah Watson, El Dorado High School

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Ashley Nielson, El Dorado High School
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“The Promise to me is a secure future. It is the foot that holds the door open to our future.”
-Jordan Norman, El Dorado High School

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Thank You

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Thank you El Dorado School District Students

for taking the Promise and pursuing your goals, for working hard through school to prepare for the Promise.
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Thank you El Dorado School District Teachers, Administrators, School Board and Staff

for meeting the challenge of the Promise by providing more rigorous curriculum for our students, for creating a “college-going culture in our District and for encouraging your students to be prepared to accept the Promise.
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Thank you EHS graduates

for using the Promise as it was intended; for accepting it and pursuing your goals of going to college.
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Thank you Promise Scholars

for keeping the Promise and continuing to use it to better yourselves.
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Thank you Promise graduates

for staying the course and finishing the race, for using the full potential of the Promise and claiming your college degree.
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Thank you parents and families of EHS students

for being a part of this district and encouraging your students to take the Promise and achieve great things.
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Thank you El Dorado

for rallying with Murphy Oil Corporation to make El Dorado a community of Promise.

About our Promise Scholars

The El Dorado Promise scholars who go on to complete their college degrees and then return to contribute to our local community are always a welcome sign. The Promise is designed to enhance life here in El Dorado, which makes it rewarding to see that so many scholar graduates choose to pay it forward by returning here.

In fact, we have seen this happen quite frequently. A large group of scholarship recipients went off to their respective El Dorado Promise colleges and graduated before returning back to work in the El Dorado School District. These are educators who know firsthand the power of the Promise, and they are advocates for it as they work and engage with fellow students in the school system.

El Dorado Promise alumni have studied all over the country

The El Dorado Promise awards high school graduates with money to cover tuition and mandatory expenses that come with a two- or four-year college or university, either here in Arkansas or elsewhere throughout the country. This financial boost has produced El Dorado Promise graduates who learned in institutions that span across the country, from California to Maine. This illustrates the truly limitless opportunity that Promise scholars get through this unique program.

How El Dorado Promise scholars fully leverage the program

It’s important to understand the fine details of this scholarship program and how it can work for El Dorado High School graduates. The amount of scholarship money is based on the length of time a student has spent in the El Dorado School District.

Students who have spent kindergarten through high school are awarded 100 percent of the scholarship money, which is equal to the highest in-state public college or university rate.

Students who have not been in the system all 13 years will receive a prorated sum. The scholarship is renewable for up to five consecutive years. To remain eligible, scholars must maintain a minimum 2.0 GPA and complete 24 credit hours per year as full-time students. The Promise has enhanced and transformed the educational landscape in this town, and it’s very evident when you look at the many El Dorado Promise scholars who have been positively affected.

El Dorado Promise

2000 Wildcat Drive, El Dorado, AR 71730
For questions about the application, call The Promise Office at 870-864-5128.