It was a banner night for Mercy College, its supporters and its students, whose futures are far brighter than the clear blue skies over the Long Island Sound.
On Wednesday, April 3, over 330 people gathered at Glen Island Harbour Club in New Rochelle to mark the school’s 38th Annual Trustees’ Scholarship Dinner. More than $580,000 was raised to benefit essential student scholarships.
Among the attendees were dozens of Mercy College students, all of whom have received some amount of financial aid. Their academic success was an example of the importance of maintaining funding of such scholarships.
The ceremony was led by Tara Rosenblum, Emmy award-winning anchor and reporter for News 12 Westchester/Hudson Valley. Mercy College President Timothy L. Hall offered opening remarks, explaining that Mercy is an institution where students can get ahead. Hall was followed by Bruce Haber, chairman of Mercy College’s Board of Trustees.
“This dinner is a part of the many things we’re doing to try to help make sure our College is student-ready by making sure that college is affordable for our students,” Hall remarked, “and that’s why the funds that are raised by this dinner annually are a part of being student-ready for students who may not have all the resources in the world.”
The evening’s honorees included: Edward B. (Ted) Dunn, H.D. ’06, Mercy College trustee and recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award; William V. Cuddy, Jr., former Mercy trustee and executive vice president at CBRE, who received the Community Leadership Award; and Sasha Garcia ’19, M.S. ’20, who received the Award for Student Achievement.
In accepting his award, Dunn noted that Mercy is helping its students achieve successes and create better lives for themselves and their families.
“The thought I’d like to leave you with is that Mercy is delivering every day, every year what it takes to help achieve the American dream. It is four-square in the middle of what is probably our most significant social problem in this country, and I’m very proud to have been involved with it,” Dunn said.
Garcia, who dreamt of attending Mercy as early as the seventh grade, was introduced by Nicoll Baez ’18, last year’s recipient of the Award for Student Achievement. A fixture on the Manhattan Campus, Garcia has deftly balanced a rigorous academic schedule with multiple jobs and extracurricular activities. Sasha credited her mother for inspiring her to pursue her educational goals, as well as for fine-tuning her multi-tasking abilities.
“I guess it’s no surprise that I have my mother’s multi-tasking genes. At Mercy I’ve been taking six courses each semester, which is a total of 18 credits. I mentor up to 10 students. I work three different jobs to help me pay for college,” said Garcia, who plans to work toward her master’s degree and doctorate in education, “and I founded several clubs at the Manhattan Campus so our students there could enjoy the same vibrant student life as they do in Dobbs Ferry and the Bronx.
“Make no mistake: I’m working hard to achieve this. I’m juggling school, work, running clubs, advising younger students, getting whatever extra help I need from the Mercy tutoring center and it takes a lot of planning and organizational skills to get this driven. It also takes help in the form of scholarship money so that I can afford to get my dream education. Let me look at you all in the eye and tell you that I am grateful, I am thankful, and I am a good investment.”
Cuddy was the evening’s final honoree and thanked his family and fellow honorees, as well as numerous other individuals for their support of Mercy. He also offered a prayer for the continued future success of the College.
With such investments in its students, it is safe to say that Mercy College appears to have quite a bountiful future ahead.
To see a video of Mercy students Keyla Rijo, Fatoumata Gary and Milo Dolantree that was played at the Trustees' Scholarship Dinner, please click .
To see a video of Mercy students Matthew Palczewski, Daniel Poku and Jahnel Gonzalez that was played at the Trustees' Scholarship Dinner, please click .
To see a video featuring Mercy Scholars Serafina Fichter, Jenny Balbuena an Mohamed Ahmed, please click .