Graduates Receive Generous Scholarships

By MANDY LOCKE

Christmas is coming early this year for 133 graduating seniors at
Martha's Vineyard Regional High School, as it will for 115 of the
school's recent alumni. Gifts will pour in from 123 community
groups playing Santa who will deliver checks of all sizes this Friday
night - paid to the order of colleges, universities and training
institutions across the nation.

About $650,000 will be divided to make continuing education a
reality for 248 Island youths.

"The cost of education tacked on to the cost of living on
Martha's Vineyard makes the burden of paying for an education
unreal for some families," said high school guidance director
Michael McCarthy, noting that tuition at Massachusetts state colleges
has risen to $12,000 this year.

But with these scholarships, the community helps manufacture dreams
of all shapes and sizes - offering scholarships for the potential
chef, the aspiring nurse, the soon-to-be biologist and the hopeful
performer.

The list of givers reads like an Island phone book: DAR, Dukes
County Savings Bank, First Congregational Church, Holy Ghost
Association, Agricultural Society, Horse Council, Striped Bass and
Bluefish Derby and the Scottish Society are just a handful of the
100-plus donors.

"They are helping keep kids' dreams alive," Mr.
McCarthy said. "That's an unbelievable statement to make to
kids."

And those statements just keep coming. Fifteen new scholarships
arrived at the guidance office this year, a few in memory of the lives
of Islanders including Edmond G. Coogan and Paul J. Nichols.

"Memorial scholarships help us remember the names of those who
aren't here, and it helps those families to meet these new kids
who are going out and starting their lives. They get that
message," Mr. McCarthy said.

Some honor the careers of folks like Ruth Brightman Honick and Peter
Boak. Still others boost a talent, like the Dionis Coffin Riggs Writing
Award and the WIMP Big Brother/Big Sister scholarship. Two of the new
additions - Martha's Vineyard Surfside Motel Scholarships
and the Akerley's Catering Culinary Scholarship - aim to
encourage a niche career pursuit.

"It's a way of saying our kids are important enough to
go on and get more education," Mr. McCarthy said. "I know
this doesn't happen anywhere else. It's unbelievable how
much they are supported."

The program has grown so large that management of the endowment and
setting up each scholarship is a year-round endeavor for guidance
secretary Bonnie Jackson. But it's a duty that constantly inspires
her.

"We're amazed all the time," Ms. Jackson said.

"Every day, Bonnie comes into my office and says ‘You
won't believe what someone offered to give this
year,'" Mr. McCarthy added.

Thankfully, the scholarship program has grown with the size of the
class. Four years ago, only 132 students graduated from the high school,
but the class of 2002 has more than half again that many, with 216
members.

Nearly three-fourths of the Class of 2002 will be furthering their
education next year - a large percentage considering the high
school's comprehensive education plan. Some vocational students
earned enough training to pursue a career directly after June 16
graduation. Some of these students, too, will receive a monetary boost
as they transition from school to trade.

As alumni of the high school who received scholarships as seniors,
Ms. Jackson and Mr. McCarthy know how much the awards mean to Island
families. And they see those same seeds of appreciation in recent
alumni.

"Their words of thanks - I think that's some of
what keeps it going," Ms. Jackson said. "The police
department, the fire department, they do all sorts of things to raise
money for these scholarships. I don't think they would put the
time in if the students didn't appreciate it."

And that spirit of sacrifice even trickles into the graduating
class. Three of the students that Mr. McCarthy feels confident would
have earned some scholarship money didn't even apply, consciously
leaving the available funds for their peers.

"Those kids didn't apply because they knew their
families could afford their cost of education. It's a whole system
of unselfishness," Mr. McCarthy said.

Much of this year's $650,000 is well distributed among the
seniors and recent graduates.

"This year it's really spread out," Ms. Jackson
said. "Some years one kid gets $16,000 and someone else gets none.
It's always upsetting when someone doesn't get
anything."

Most of the kids ranked in the top 20 will earn at least $6,000 in
scholarships, and some significantly more.

The school and community do not simply cradle these Island teens
through their first year of college or training. The guidance office
acts as an informational clearing house for recent graduates seeking
scholarship money beyond freshman year.

"At the end of it all, we're celebrating our community,
we're celebrating them and we're celebrating the people who
aren't with us this year," Mr. McCarthy said.