MCLA Book Awards honor high school juniors

NORTH ADAMS – Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) has come up with a new way to honor young community leaders.

“We’re here to support our local students,” Joshua Mendel, associate director of admissions, said.

The college’s admissions office has announced the recipients of the first MCLA Book Awards, juniors at area high schools who have demonstrated academic and civic excellence. The honorees received a $500 tuition scholarship (for the fall 2014 term at MCLA), an award certificate and a book written by an MCLA faculty member.

“The MCLA Book Award honors students who have made a positive difference in our community,” Mr. Mendel said. “We wanted to make sure that the local students were supported by MCLA not only with financial aid scholarships, but with some public recognition as well.”

The students who received the inaugural awards are Makenna Arnold (McCann Technical School), Alexis Bedini (Drury High School), Gladys Garcia (Pittsfield High
School), Rosemarie Mele (Mount Greylock Regional High School), Sienna Powers
(Taconic High School) and Hannah Stansfield (Hoosac Valley High School).

“These students are doing great things as they give back to The Berkshires and work hard in school,” Mr. Mendel said.

Students were selected at the recommendation of their high school guidance counselors and at the agreement of their respective schools’ principals and the districts’ superintendents. To qualify for the award, students must have a grade point average of a B or higher, display strong leadership qualities and positively contribute to the school and local community.

This year’s awarded book is Exploring Nirvana: The Art of Jessica Park by Dr. Anthony Gengarelly, which was created as the result of several arts management courses at
MCLA focusing on Williamstown artist Jessica Park and her work. Twenty-six individual entries about Park’s paintings were written by MCLA students.

“I hope the recipients of this award will find the book an inspiration as to what can happen here at MCLA when students and faculty and experts in a field of learning collaborate on a project,” Dr. Gengarelly said.

Posted by Catherine M. Krummey on June 27, 2013. Filed under Education News,News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry