Italian-American pols offer college scholarships

April 8, 2014 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Diane Savino.jpg

Share this:

College-bound high school students are being urged by Brooklyn state legislators to apply for college scholarships being offered by a group of lawmakers.

The New York State Conference of Italian-American Legislators is accepting applications for four $2,000 scholarships to be awarded at the group’s Legislative Conference Day in Albany on June 9. The deadline for filing an application is April 25.

The scholarships are open to high school and college students living in New York State.

The conference, which includes several Brooklyn lawmakers in its membership, is a bipartisan organization made up of New York State assembly and senate members of Italian descent. The group’s mission, according to its chairman, Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo (D-Endwell), is to highlight Italian-American contributions to the state and to promote Italian heritage and culture.

State Sen. Diane Savino (D-Coney Island-Bensonhurst-Staten Island) and Assemblyman Joseph Lentol (D-Williamsburg-Greenpoint) are members of the conference.

“Our conference is very proud of our role in promoting higher education and assisting students in reaching their academic goals and full potential for future success in the global marketplace,” Lentol said.

The conference members work at highlighting Italian-American contributions to New York in all aspects of society, including literature, the arts, architecture and politics, according to Savino, who said the legislators are trying to dispel negative stereotypes of Italian-Americans that still exist.

The scholarships are meant to offset some of the costs of college, Savino said. “Given the high costs of college, every opportunity must be made by local students and their working families to meet their required expenses with scholarships as well as with student loans, available financial aid, and personal contributions,” she said. “I highly recommend that our area’s students apply to the conference for these prestigious scholarships so that they may hopefully secure as much extra help with their expenses as possible.”

Students can obtain scholarship applications at the offices of their local elected officials.

Scholarship eligibility will be based upon the student’s grade point average, interest in pursuing a higher education, involvement in the local community as well as, individual financial need.

For more information, call Savino’s office at 718-727-9406 or Lentol’s office at 718-383-7474.