Former Bucks County Community College graduate, Gabriella Riccardo, now a junior at Temple University, was awarded the Morris M. Davis Award.  The prestigious Davis award includes a $1,500 annual scholarship to a student intern who provides outstanding contributions to the community.

An alliance between Bucks County Community College and Foundation Community Partnerships’ Summer Youth Corps program provided Gabriella with a service-learning opportunity through which she earned college credits WHILE getting paid to intern at the Cancer Support Network of Greater Philadelphia, also known as Gilda’s Club.

The Summer Youth Corps program is unique; it provides an integrative service-learning experience benefitting interns, clients, human service agencies and the community.  Student interns explore fields of interest, gain insight into community challenges and successes, earn Bucks County Community College credits and a paycheck.

During the 10 week summer program psychology major Gabriella interned at Gilda’s Club for 32 hours a week, developing programs for young children whose lives are touched by cancer.  She also spent one day a week in a classroom with 15 other service-learning interns where she learned to connect academics to professional responsibilities and internship duties, as well as benefit from guided supervision.

Gabriella delivered an impressive thank you speech to over 150 community service leaders, non-profit organizations, and local governmental leaders on October 22 at a luncheon ceremony at Doylestown Country Club, hosted by Ron Bernstein, Executive Director of Foundations Community Partnership.

Gabriella showed herself to be a true example of the “Best of Bucks.”  Yet she stands in a growing circle of Bucks County Community College students.  Since the inception of the Summer Youth Corps program 7 years ago, 3 of the Davis awards have been earned by Bucks County Community College students.  And the competition is pretty steep as all Summer Youth Corps service-learning college interns are not only bright and determined, yet often previous scholarship winners now attending universities across the nation.

Bucks County Community College students are clearly getting a premium education.  And many students are actively taking advantage of the college’s many scholarships.

Bucks County Community College’s 50 year history reflects not only educational affordability and excellence, but an achievable means by which one is able to attain their goals, grow in leadership and collaborate in creating a kinder, stronger sense of community.

For more information on Bucks County Community Scholarships:

http://www.bucks.edu/about/foundation/scholarships/

For more information on Foundation Community Partnership’s Summer Youth Corps Program:

http://www.fcpartnership.org/service-learning-internships/

— Deborah Sedik, Associate Professor Psychology, Bucks County Community College