L to R: Carol Robinson, Diana Plumis, Marian Berge, Susan Cedergreen and Sharon Kiddle, along with Warner Blake who took this photograph, are members of the 2010 Scholarship Committee.

THE ONCE PACKED-FULL PLASTIC BAGGIE OF MARIAN’S BREAKFAST COOKIES was down to the last one by 1 o’clock. Six volunteer application readers for the Snohomish Education Foundation have been gathered around a table in Glacier Peak’s career center, deciding which students would receive a college scholarship since ten. That last cookie was distracting me.

To earn a place at this table, I read over 150 scholarship applications by graduating seniors from both Glacier Peak and Snohomish high schools. And I volunteered for this task when board members of the Snohomish Historical Society voted against my proposal for a committee to read the applications and decide who would receive the Society’s scholarship.

For the past six years, the historical society has given a $1000 scholarship through the Foundation, thanks to the creative spirit and can-do energy of Mary Pat Connors, co-owner of Kusler’s, who established the sale of the popular Christmas tree ornaments — hand-painted in the Ukraine featuring a different historic home every year. When an organization, or individual, establishes a scholarship with the Foundation, they are given the choice to either read the applications and select a recipient, or allow the Foundation to make the decision for them.

“Leave it to the experts” was the sentiment expressed by the Society’s board at the time, which I took as a challenge.

Marian Berge

Marian Berge is the co-founder of the Foundation, along with Mal Harding, a school board member at the time, which they formed in 1986 after both returned from different conferences with the same idea. Only Marian has served as the chair of the scholarship reading committee since the beginning, so she was the one to contact about joining in. My offer of help was welcomed.

As I suspected, reading the applications is an education onto itself, offering a rare opportunity to experience the variety of individuals that make up a generation that I tended to see as a group. Of course, only the top students brother to apply for the most part, so the grades and activities of the applicants are outstanding. The one-page essays, however, range between a tedious collection of clichés about the value of education and inspired analogies that jump up and put a smile the reader’s face. For example, one writer compared the converging weather systems of the Pacific Northwest to the forces in her life.

My colleagues for a day included Diana Plumis, who was also a first time reader, but whom readers may recognize as the former Principal of the high school. She felt surprised by the many stories in the essays that told of parents out of work, or devastated by medical expenses. I can’t imagine ever forgetting the heartbreaking story of the parents who wouldn’t sign the scholarship permission page because, as the writer reported, you will never win one anyway.

Sharon Kiddle, was a reader for the Bruce Fritch Scholarship over the past five years, before offering to help with the Foundation two years ago. (Sharon is member of the Fritch family through her marriage to Eric, Bruce’s brother.) Several families have set up a scholarship fund with the Foundation in the memory of a family member. The funds are invested and the operating monies are with First Heritage Bank. Its president, Cathy Reines, is currently serving as Treasurer, and she also chairs the Foundation’s Finance Committee, which overseas the management of all funds.

I know Carol Robinson as the leader of a local girl-scout troop that volunteered for tasks around the Blackman House Museum and even marched with the Society in the Kla Ha Ya Parade. Since Carol seemed to be the only member of our panel that had a child still in school, her knowledge of the families involved with the applications added a useful ingredient to the mix of discussion.

And Susan Cedergreen, sitting next to me, was an English teacher at the high school for 30 years. I couldn’t help sneak a peak at the extensive notes she had taken while reading the applications, while I, on the other hand, used a simple numerical system with 5 being the highest. It was confirming that regardless of the method, our evaluations were similar as names were put forth for the various scholarships.

Of course, all of us felt a little defeated by the number of excellent and worthy applications compared to the amount of funds available. Nevertheless, in dueling ceremonies across the river, $46,600 in scholarships was awarded to 34 students at Glacier Peak High on Wednesday, June 2; $68,715 was awarded to 55 students at Snohomish High on Tuesday, June 8; and, $4,700 in scholarships went to 4 students attending AIM.

As I remember, it was during a lively discussion, accompanied by erasing names from the white board to reach the magic number of 4 for the Burt Scholarships, when I broke the cookie in half from the outside and reached in to take the smaller piece, after all, I was the new guy. And Marian does make an outstanding cookie.

………………………………………………………

List of scholarships awarded is HERE.

Please Join Us!

STEVE THOMAS, GRANT COMMITTEE CHAIR, announces that 42 Snohomish School District teachers will be receiving Grant Awards on Thursday, February 18th, 6:30p in the training room at the Resource Service Center, located at 1601 Avenue D, Snohomish.

You will find a list of the grant awards HERE

And teachers awarded a grant are invited to post a short comment below as to the nature of your project. Thanks! And congratulations.