STCC nursing student awarded John Richard DeMarco Jr. Scholarship
STCC nursing student Ashley L. Gray receives the John Richard DeMarco Jr. Scholarship for 2017. Left to right: Gray, STCC President Dr. John B. Cook, Joan DeMarco, Director of Nursing Lisa Fugiel and Student & Multicultural Affairs Vice President Kamari Collins.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Springfield Technical Community College announces Ashley L. Gray, 30, of South Hadley, has been awarded the 2017 John Richard DeMarco Jr. Scholarship.
Joan DeMarco, of Suffield, Conn., presented the scholarship to Gray based on her commitment to furthering her education. The $300 scholarship – given in the memory of DeMarco’s son – has been awarded for the past 30 years to a STCC student in the spring semester.
Gray earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology, but decided to return to college to pursue a degree in nursing. She chose STCC because she believed it has the best nursing program in the region.
“I think the school is really great,” Gray said. “The nursing program is beyond what I thought it would be, and it’s at an affordable price.
“I was so excited to receive this scholarship,” Gray said. “When I got the phone call, I was saying, ‘This is awesome! Thank you so much.’”
Gray and her husband have a 6-year-old child, with another one on the way. She plans to take the summer off to spend time with her new baby before returning to the nursing program in the fall.
Her goal is to earn her associate degree in May, then practice patient care. Her long-term goal, Gray said, is to continue her education and pursue a bachelor’s degree in nursing.
DeMarco chose Gray after reading her letter, which in part describes how she decided to pursue a nursing degree “later in life” even though she was told by some that she couldn’t do it.
“Well, here I am with all the confidence in the world saying ‘here I am’ and ‘yes I can,’” Gray wrote. “This degree means more to me than just getting a piece of paper proving I made it. Getting my nursing license to practice means that I can follow my dream of providing quality patient care to the people who need it.”
About Springfield Technical Community College
Founded in 1967 and located on 35 acres of the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, STCC is a major resource for the economic vitality of Western Massachusetts. As the only technical community college in Massachusetts, STCC, an Achieving the Dream Leader College, offers a variety of career programs unequalled in the state. STCC’s highly regarded transfer programs in business, engineering, liberal arts, science and technology continue to provide the most economical options for students pursuing a four-year degree. With an annual enrollment of more than 8,500 day, evening, weekend and online students, STCC is a vibrant campus rich in diversity.
For more information about STCC, visit www.stcc.edu. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@S_T_C_C).
Media Contact:
Jim Danko, Coordinator of Media Relations
(413) 755-4812, jdanko@stcc.edu