As we are now counting down the days left of our last days of high school ever, seniors have been pretty busy! We’ve applied and gotten into colleges and universities, completed our final APs, and submitted scholarship applications! On May 29th, at 7 PM in the district auditorium, the class of 2024 was awarded scholarships from numerous community members.
The scholarships ranged from $150 to $10,000 and many had interesting awards, such as an iPad! Grace Orr, one of the seniors who achieved great success at Scholarship Night, was awarded the Millard & Rowena Jayne Memorial Scholarship, the South Fork Sea Farmers and Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation’s Steward of the Marine Environment Award and the Kiwanis Club of Greater Westhampton Award. She was awarded over $500 and of course the iPad from the Kiwanis Club! Grace says she applied to the South Fork Sea Farmers Award because, “this organization encourages residents to be stewards of their local bays, hopes to raise awareness of issues, and encourages actions to help improve sustainability. This aligned with my perspective and future goals so I decided to apply for the scholarship.”
Underclassmen like sophomores and juniors need to start choosing areas of community service or responsibilities that align with their interests. According to the GoingMerry website, a scholarship and application platform, students should apply for their high school scholarships because it helps minimize student debt, allows students to go to their dream schools, helps you obtain resources like textbooks and school supplies, leads to future job opportunities, and shows your success on resumes. While scholarships are considered to only lower the cost of your college tuition, they can be utilized for so much more.
Patricija Dirzius, a senior who received 11 scholarships that night, said “her high involvement in the community” is one of the reasons for her success. She also said, “These scholarships will help fund my first year’s tuition and it is a great feeling to have the support of various members of your community.” Patricija received the Riverhead Woman’s Club, Westhampton Woman’s Club, Junior Ambulance Member Scholarship, Hurricane Educational Foundation, Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis Scholarship, Rotary Scholarship, Quogue School Academic Scholarship, Student Government Award, Business Advisory Club Scholarship, and the Theater Booster Club awards.
This goes to show WHBHS, go out and get involved! It will only help you in your future and could help find something you are truly passionate about. Don’t forget to apply for any and all scholarships made available next year in early April!