Scholarships continue Kent State Geauga’s legacy

Kent State Geauga and Regional Academic Center continued its tradition of awarding scholarships to students on Sept. 27.

Students and their families gathered at Wicked Woods in Newbury Township for dinner and presentation of the scholarships.

There were 27 scholarships awarded to 51 students valued at over $35,000.

Students apply for the scholarships each spring. Their applications and grades are reviewed by a committee and then the qualified recipients are chosen. About half of the scholarships are named for the donors or in memory of a loved one.

The Spitz Memorial fund was started by Eleanor “Ellie” Spitz in memory of her late husband and father-inlaw, for their love of higher education. The Gerry and Sally Hornick endowed Scholarship for Middle Childhood Education was started by the Hornick’s back in 2010, to ensure students would have the resources to finish their education without so many financial barriers.

The Geauga County Township Association or GCTA began a scholarship for students living in Geauga County. The GCTA, led by then president Jim Dvorak worked hard to raise $25,000 in just three years so that it was endowed and could be awarded sooner.

Junior Hannah Dussing, a psychology major, was one of the GCTA Scholarship recipients and this year’s student speaker.

“I was told by a number of peers ‘you should do something that guarantees a job,’ or ‘You should do something that guarantees a good salary,’” she said.

But after taking a Kent Core class in psychology, and changing her major twice, she did it one more time; this time to psychology. She has found her passion for helping others and a degree she can pursue to do just that. While taking courses, she is working at Ravenwood Health to learn even more and gain realworld experiences.

“It was so nice to see so many of our donors here tonight,” said Angela Spalsbury, Ph.D. Dean of Kent State Geauga. “Their gifts are making a difference in the lives of our students, by allowing them to focus on their education and not how they are going to pay for tuition.

“We put our students first, and so do our donors by starting and supporting scholarships.”

SUBMITTED Eleanor “Ellie” Spitz of Chester Township, far right, is shown with her scholarship.