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Mitchell Scholars

One hundred twenty-nine Maine high school students have been chosen as 2008 Mitchell Scholars by the Sen. George J. Mitchell Scholarship Research Institute. With the selection of this year’s recipients, the institute has supported more than 1,500 Maine students in their pursuit of higher education.

Founded by former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell, the Mitchell Institute annually provides scholarships to one student from every public high school in the state. The scholarships are awarded for academic potential, community service and financial need. Scholarships average $5,000 each, dispersed in increments of $1,250 for up to four years.

Mitchell Scholars also gain access to Mitchell Institute support programs, which include community service projects, leadership and professional development, mentoring opportunities and summer employment fellowships. These programs connect and engage the Mitchell Scholars with their communities and their chosen career paths with a goal of encouraging graduates to remain in Maine after college.

Mitchell Scholars also become a part of a long-term longitudinal research study that will track their progress and evaluate the impact of the organization’s programming.

Since 2003, KeyBank has provided funding for 16 Mitchell Scholarships, one for each Maine county, in the amount of $6,000, or $1,500 each college year. These awards are targeted to first-generation college students.

Sixty-three percent of the new class of Mitchell Scholars comes from families with less than $5,000 available from their own resources to contribute to the student’s college education, and 61 percent of the Mitchell Scholars selected in 2008 come from families where neither parent holds a four-year college degree.

“These are students for whom the scholarship will make a real difference and who will, in turn, make a difference in their communities,” Mitchell said in a statement. “My family had few financial resources. Neither of my parents finished high school, but they believed in education. With their help and the help of others, I was able to go to college, and it changed my life. Maine’s young people deserve the same opportunity to succeed.”

For more information about the Mitchell Institute, visit www.mitchellinstitute.org.

Area Mitchell Scholars are:

. Christian Larochelle, Bangor High School.

. Travis Blackmer, Brewer High School.

. Nathan Pukay, Bucksport High School.

. Andrew McLaughlin, Central High School.

. Sara Pomeroy, Hampden Academy.

. Denise Gray, Hermon High School.

. Autumn Doughty, John Bapst Memorial High School.

. Tyler Cates, Old Town High School.

. Matthieu Nadeau, Orono High School.

Patriot’s Pen contest

OLD TOWN – Cmdr. Roger St. Louis of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3381 announced that students in grades six to eight are eligible to participate in the VFW and Ladies Auxiliary Patriot’s Pen essay competition. Students are invited to write a 300-400 word essay on “Why America’s Veterans Should Be Honored.” The deadline is Nov. 1.

State winners compete for $75,000 in U.S. Savings Bonds and an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C.

For more information, call 827-5331 or visit www.vfw.org.

Bangor Band Scholarship

BANGOR – The Bangor Band announced that Liz Graham, a recent graduate of Hampden Academy, is the recipient of the band’s first Bangor Band Scholarship.

The scholarship will be given to one high school senior who has participated in the band for two years or more and has demonstrated a high level of music ability and dedication.

Graham plays French horn with the band and will attend the University of Maine in the fall to major in music.

Service Learning Awards

AUGUSTA – Students from 14 schools around the state brought their real-world service learning projects to the State House recently, sharing them with legislators, Gov. John Baldacci and others.

Area schools winning Service Learning Project Awards:

. Leonard Middle School, Old Town, Animal Awareness: Students raise awareness and educate others about animal rights issues.

. United Technologies Center, Bangor, Chronicling Service Learning: Students create a public service announcement for service learning in Maine, including filming the Hall of Flags event.

Students exhibited their projects in the Hall of Flags. Projects ranged from building bird houses for tree swallows to a science curriculum involving the Cathance River Ecology Center in Topsham, to creating digital stories of community members who have made a difference in the students’ lives.

Service learning is a teaching strategy that connects curriculum with community, allowing students to deepen their knowledge and develop civic engagement.

Junior Solar Sprint

BANGOR – Teams from James F. Doughty Middle School earned invitations to compete at the 11th annual Northeast Regional Junior Solar Sprint Championship on June 8 in Springfield, Mass.

Each year, the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association invites top winners from local Sprint races across the Northeast to compete at the regional championship.

Doughty Middle School team members are Jonathan Stanhope, Marshall Kirk, Manny Bonatakis, Rachel Clark, Haylee Lawson, Hayley Trafton and Jensen Cook of Bangor. They were scheduled to compete against top teams from 20 other area races across the Northeast.

The Junior Solar Sprint is the children’s science and engineering project that was started by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the early 1990s. Largely through grassroots volunteer efforts, dedicated educators and the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association, the project has grown each year throughout the Northeast, with more than 100,000 children participating.

Teams compete for top awards in innovation, craftsmanship, technical merit, and speed. One well-deserving team will be honored as Grand Champion, while another will win the hearts of peers and earn the Kid’s Choice Award.

Through the Junior Solar Sprint program, middle school students learn about efficiency, electric motors and renewable energy, technologies needed for America to produce and support clean vehicles.

To learn more, visit www.nesea.org/education/jss.

Reeds Brook Middle School

HAMPDEN – Weeks of teamwork and creative brainpower have brought success to Hampden-area youngsters who placed second at the state Destination ImagiNation Tournament. It was a tough, exciting and rewarding time for the students as they worked their way through levels of competition, said team managers Barry and Gloria Asalone.

The teams must place first or second in their category at the regional tournament to go to the state tournament level.

The team from Reeds Brook Middle School won a second place at the state tournament. Part of their challenge was to build an 83/4-inch structure out of wood that would bear weight. The structure cannot weigh more than three-quarters of an ounce. The Reeds Brook students’ structure held 115 pounds. They also had to script and present an eight-minute skit.

Reeds Brook Destination ImagiNation team members are Katie Asalone, Annie Hawkins, Makayla Mulcahey, Olivia Smith and Taylor Wagner.

Voice of Democracy contest

OLD TOWN – Cmdr. Roger St. Louis of the Veterans of Foreign War Post 3381 announced the kick-off of the 2008 VFW and Ladies Auxiliary Voice of Democracy Scholarship competition. High school students in the Old Town area have the opportunity to win thousands of dollars in scholarships and a trip to Washington.

Students compete by writing and recording a three- to five-minute essay expressing their views on “Service and Sacrifice by America’s Veterans Benefit Today’s Youth By …” Deadline for entries is Nov. 1.

State winners receive a $1,000 scholarship, national winners a $30,000 scholarship.

In the 60 years since the VFW and Ladies Auxiliary have been involved in Voice of Democracy, more than 7 million students have participated.

Students and teachers interested in the competition may call 827-5331 for more information, or visit www.vfw.org.

Colleges

Albany College of Pharmacy

STETSON – Terri Underhill of Stetson graduated from the Albany College of Pharmacy in Albany, N.Y., on May 11.

Eastern Maine Community

College

BANGOR – Seven community college students were honored for academic success and campus and community involvement at a ceremony hosted by the Maine Community College System board.

The 2008 Students of the Year Award ceremony was held in Augusta. Board chairman Dennis King gave remarks and joined President John Fitzsimmons in presentations.

Award winner in the Bangor area is Thomas Swieczkowski, 52, of Pittsfield, culinary arts, 4.0 GPA, Eastern Maine Community College.

Award winners were selected by college faculty and staff.

Swieczkowski was awarded a John H. Lapoint Jr. Leadership Award in the amount of $1,000.

Keene State College

These area students were named to the dean’s list for the spring semester at Keene State College in Keene, N.H.:

. Kourtney Lipka of Orrington.

. Brian Sturgeon of Holden.

University of Massachusetts

NEWBURGH – Kelly McClure of Palmer, Mass., was inducted into the honor society Alpha Kappa Delta recently. She graduated May 24 with honors from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. She received a bachelor’s degree in social and behavioral sciences, and is the daughter of Herb and Nancy McClure of Newburgh.

University of New England

STETSON – Kaitlyn Dyleski has been named to the dean’s list for the spring semester at the University of New England in Biddeford. She also was nominated for the Sophomore of the Year award. She is a 2006 graduate of John Bapst Memorial High School and the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Dyleski of Stetson.

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HOLDEN – Megan McBurnie received the Sophomore Award for Academic Excellence at an annual awards ceremony at the University of New England, where she is studying behavioral neuroscience. At the university, she is a member of the Club Ultimate Frisbee team and the community mentor program.

McBurnie, a 2006 graduate of John Bapst Memorial High School, is the daughter of Jeff and Kim McBurnie of Holden.

University of Vermont

Area students received degrees during commencement ceremonies in May at the University of Vermont, Burlington:

. Allison Eaton of Bangor, bachelor’s degree in psychology.

. Dan Swenson of Hampden, bachelor’s degree in history.

. Abby Farnham of Winterport, bachelor’s degree in environmental studies.