Morris County Announces 2024 NJAC Foundation Scholarships

Students Honored at Morris County Vocational School District Awards Ceremony

Morris County Commissioner Deborah Smith participated in the Morris County Vocational School District (MCVSD) Awards Recognition Ceremony earlier this month, where she presented the 2024 New Jersey Association of Counties (NJAC) Foundation Scholarships to this year’s student honorees.

The 2024 NJAC scholarship recipients included six recent graduates of MCVSD: Aditya Mahalingam of Ledgewood, Kaden DeRitter of Denville, Aine Glock of Bloomingdale, Nicholas Furman of Dover, Adrianna Martin of Rockaway Township, and Katherine Cifelli of Lincoln Park.

“These exceptional students are being recognized for their academic achievements and community engagement. For many years, the NJAC Foundation has awarded these scholarships to graduates of county vocational-technical schools across the state, helping them pursue their educational and career aspirations through higher education,” said Commissioner Smith.

The 2024 scholarships were made possible through donations from Amazon, AT&T, New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Group, PSE&G, SHI International Corporation and for the first time, VMware.

Amazon awarded a grant of $21,000 to the NJAC Foundation for scholarships to county vocational-technical school graduates who plan on continuing their education in New Jersey at a county college or state college or university. The foundation awarded one scholarship of $1,000 in all 21 counties.

AT&T doubled its 2024 award with a grant of $21,000 to the NJAC Foundation for scholarships to county vocational-technical school graduates who plan on continuing their education in New Jersey at a county college. All award recipients must plan on pursuing their certificate or degree in cybersecurity, computer information systems, data analytics, databased management, computer science or a related field of study. The foundation awarded scholarships of $1,000 to students in all 21 counties.

NJM Insurance Group presented NJAC with a check for $5,250 for three $1,750 scholarships, which were awarded to a student in each county where the company has headquarters - Morris, Mercer and Atlantic.

PSEG awarded the foundation a $12,500 grant for county vocational-technical school graduates who will continue their education at a county or state college or university in New Jersey. All award recipients must plan to pursue a degree in environmental science, green design, green technology, or alternative energy. Scholarships for $900 were awarded in each county where PSEG maintains a service territory or generation facility.

SHI International Corporation awarded NJAC $5,250 for county vocational-technical school graduates who will pursue degrees in technology or cyber security at a county or state college or university in New Jersey. Scholarships of $250 were awarded in all 21 counties by NJAC.

VMware awarded a grant of $10,000 to the NJAC Foundation for scholarships to county vocational-technical school graduates who will pursue higher education at a county college or state college or university in New Jersey. Ten students received $1,000 scholarships in the following NJ counties: Bergen, Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, and Union.

The NJAC Foundation is a non-profit organization affiliated with the New Jersey Association of Counties that is committed to providing innovative educational opportunities to county vocational-technical school and county college students. For more information on the foundation, visit the NJAC website: njac.org.

Morris County Vocational School District offers a wide range of career and technical education programs that range from auto service and construction trades to healthcare sciences, global commerce, performing arts and cybersecurity. The high school offers full-time academies and share-time programs on its Denville campus, and through collaboration with local school districts and the County College of Morris (CCM), also has offerings at off-site satellite locations. To learn more about MCVSD, visit mcvts.org.