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Five graduating Uniondale High School seniors have gotten a jump-start on paying for college: Milvia Aavilar Chinchilla, Christian Auguste, Savannah Hope, Kenyeli Leiva and David Ramirez were presented with $1,125 Uniondale Alumni Scholarships on June 4. All five students will be attending college in the fall.
Duane Shippey, the organizer of the scholarships and the chair of the Uniondale Alumni Association, said he sees the awards as a way to give back to his community.
“This is all about us just letting these young kids know that we were in their shoes at one point, and we do care,” Shippey said. “We want to pay it forward, and hope that they remember that and can do the same.”
Rochelle C. Brown, Uniondale High’s assistant principal and the chair of the scholarship committee, compiles a booklet of scholarships given to graduating seniors, with the alumni scholarship being one of around 50 options for them.
“We have different students of all different socioeconomic statuses, so we understand that any scholarship is beneficial to them and helps them to achieve their post-secondary goals,” Brown said.
The alumni association and scholarship are particularly meaningful to the school, she added, because they set a good example for the students.
“We just love the fact that the alumni (are) connected to the school community still,” Brown said, “and it’s just a good example for our students, when they get into their careers, to give back to those who come after them.”
This is the sixth year the alumni scholarships have been presented. Shippey created them in 2018, enlisting donations from his fellow members of the Class of 1993 and alumni from other years.
To qualify for the awards, students must have a grade-point average of at least 79, and they are required to submit a 500-word essay about their community involvement in Uniondale and their future endeavors, whether it’s a college path or something less traditional.
“In this day and age, college is not a traditional route anymore,” Shippey said. “For some people, it’s something that’s more outside of corporate America. I like to know what their plans are.”
Georgette Grier-Key, board president of the Museum Association of New York, who is active in other civic-minded organizations as well, is a Uniondale High graduate and a member of the alumni association. She said she is proud to be able to contribute to the scholarship, and to take part in the selection process.
“It’s very rewarding to be a part of the process, but even more rewarding to be a graduate of Uniondale High School,” Grier-Key said.
Erica Lee-Benedetto, another graduate, is now the chief executive of Marquis Who’s Who, a publishing company based in Uniondale. She remains a strong presence in the community and in the alumni association, and said she believes in giving back.
Shippey “reached out to me, gave me this opportunity,” Lee-Benedetto said, “and I, in the future, as a fellow Uniondale alumni, will then give back, not just financially, but also give back as a mentor and continue the cycle.”
Shippey’s family moved to Uniondale from Queens when he was 8, and he played baseball in the Police Activity League, joined a bowling league, and swam in the public pool.
“I was able to participate in a lot of things I might not have been privy to if I stayed in Queens,” he said.
His positive experience in Uniondale, as well as scholarships he received as a student that helped him get a head start, inspired him to create the alumni scholarship and stay connected to the school district. He hopes the money will help the recipients achieve their dreams while keeping in touch with where they came from.
“We’re trying to instill that we are a true community, just like other areas and neighborhoods that stick together,” Shippey said, “and we have a strong support system that wants to make sure that (students) succeed, and those dreams can actually come true.”
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