On April 6, 2022, Mercy College hosted a celebration for graduating seniors in the Mercy Scholars Program to recognize their achievements and honor the donors who established the program and continue to ensure its success. Those in attendance included members of the Mercy College Board of Trustees, current Scholars, alumni of the Mercy Scholars Program, and Mercy College faculty and staff. At the conclusion of the celebration, the fourteen seniors who comprise the class of 2022 were presented graduation stoles to be worn at Mercy’s Commencement ceremonies that designate their successful completion of the Scholars Program.
Mercy College President Tim Hall provided his congratulations to the Scholars and sincere gratitude to the supporters of the program during the evening’s festivities. Mercy College Board Trustee Robert Niehaus also provided remarks, as well as Bernadette Wade, Mercy College chief advancement officer. Both lauded the Scholars for their accomplishments and their perseverance in navigating challenges brought on by the pandemic. Rob Cornetta, Mercy Scholars Program PACT Mentor, was master of ceremonies during the celebration.
Mercy Scholar Steven Orantes ’22 spoke in representation of the graduating class. He expressed his utmost appreciation for the support he has received at Mercy, and that as a recipient of goodwill, he is now motivated to help others. “Us as students, we have been given a lot from this program. Now it’s up to us to give back to the world, to give back to the community,” Orantes said.
Established in 2016, with support from Niehaus and his wife Kate Niehaus, as well as James McCormick and his wife Marsha McCormick, the Mercy Scholars Program awards high-achieving high school students a scholarship that covers a full four years of tuition, books and fees not covered by other aide and scholarships. Many Scholars are the first in their families to attend college. With the financial support provided through the Mercy Scholars Program, students graduate college with limited to no debt.
“I view education as a ladder – there’s different levels of life, difficulties in life, and the better educated you are the higher you get on the ladder where it’s not as hard,” Niehaus said during the evening’s program. “What we wanted to do is to extend that ladder to as many really qualified, achieving high school seniors as we could that wanted to go to Mercy. On behalf of the donors here, we want to applaud you, the students, for taking advantage of this [program] and really climbing up that ladder.”
A generous donation made by Gioietta and Alberto Vitale, H.D. ’09 in 2021 established Cornetta’s position as PACT mentor for the Mercy Scholars Program. Scholars are even more equipped with the tools to succeed—and climb the ladder—now that they have a dedicated mentor that connects the Scholars across campuses, creates cohesiveness and nurtures aspirations for success through programming and events.
To watch the full graduation ceremony, please click here.
Please click here to read the Mercy Scholars Program Annual Summary 2020-2021. To donate to the Mercy Scholars Program, please contact Bernadette Wade, chief advancement officer, at bwade@mercy.edu or (914) 674-7596.
