Press release
NANA Foundation names 24 CAE scholars for 2026
The scholarship cohort covers spring exam fees for 24 professionals, the largest class in the program's three years.
The NANA Foundation has named 24 professionals to its 2026 CAE scholarship cohort, covering the exam fee for each recipient ahead of the May 1–14 testing window. It is the largest class since the program began in 2024.
The CAE credential itself is administered by the CAE program, not by NANA. The Foundation's role is narrower and, Executive Director Samuel Heathcote said, more useful to a lot of applicants: removing the fee as a reason not to sit for the exam in the first place.
Growth in three cohorts
The Foundation opened the program with 18 scholars in 2024 and expanded to 21 in 2025. This year's class of 24 draws from member organizations across all six chapters, with recipients ranging from newly hired program coordinators to staff with a decade in association management.
"Every cohort has widened who gets to sit for the exam. Cost was the barrier we set out to remove, and it's still the one we hear about most in the applications."
— Samuel Heathcote, Executive Director, NANA Foundation
Heathcote said the review committee looks for two things above all: a letter from a supervisor confirming the applicant's association-management duties, and a short statement on how the credential fits the applicant's next few years. Neither organization size nor tenure is a factor; a two-person shop's sole staff member is judged on the same terms as a director at a national federation.
What the scholarship covers
The award pays the CAE exam fee directly to the credentialing program. Recipients are responsible for their own study materials, though many pair the scholarship with the CAE Exam Study Group or a seasonal CAE Credential Bootcamp.
Applications open each January and close in February
Recipients are notified in April, ahead of the May window
Awards follow member organizations of any size, from two-person shops to national federations
A second cohort is named each fall, ahead of the December testing window
The 2026 cohort brings the program's three-year total to 63 scholars, spanning associations with staffs as small as two and as large as several dozen.
Where recipients land
Recipients who pass during the May window will be eligible to apply their credential toward NANA's instructor roster the following year, a path several 2025 scholars have already taken. Devika Anand, a 2025 Foundation scholar who passed the CAE in the December window, now serves as a Membership Coordinator at the Alliance of Regional Credit Unions and has spoken about her path through the program at chapter events.
The Foundation tracks pass rates by cohort rather than publishing them individually, saying a single year's rate says less about the program than the trend across cohorts. Heathcote said the Foundation expects to keep growing the cohort size as long as applications keep pace, and that a class ceiling hasn't yet been discussed by the Foundation's board.
About NANA
NANA is the professional society for association executives, boards, and staff, providing research, peer community, and advocacy for the people who run the organizations that hold civic life together. The NANA Foundation is its philanthropic arm, funding CAE scholarships and institutional grants for member organizations.