On Oct. 4, the UConn Neag School of Education held its annual Scholarship Celebration, which highlights students’ academic achievements and the generosity of donors who financially support their pursuit of higher education.
“Scholarships have an immense impact on our students, who go on to impactful careers throughout Connecticut and New England, as well as throughout the nation and abroad,” Dean Jason G. Irizarry said as he opened the celebration. “We instill in our students our mission of improving educational and social systems to be more effective, equitable, and just for all.”
In the 2025-2026 academic year, the Neag School supported over 400 students with more than $580,000 in scholarships.
Following Irizarry’s remarks, guests were shown a video in which scholarship recipients Ashanty Gomez ’26 (ED) ’27 MA, JohnEthan Rivera ’27 (ED) and Tori Black ’27 (ED), ’28 MA discussed their journeys and their gratitude for the donors who made their scholarships possible.
“Receiving a scholarship means so much to me, not just financially,” said Black, a recipient of the Clark Family Foundation Fund and the Neag School of Education Undergraduate Scholarship Fund. “The fact that somebody believes in me personally — believes in me becoming a teacher — is really inspiring and inspires me to give back to my community in the same way.”
The afternoon’s student speaker, Fiona Armstrong ’27 (ED), a recipient of the Professor Emeritus William M. and Marjorie Servedio Scholarship, then spoke about her academic path and what the scholarship means to her. She entered UConn as a history major and had previously declared a second major in political science before enrolling in the Neag School’s sport management program.
“Discovering this program opened so many doors for me and helped me discover my passion for women’s sports and community engagement through sporting events,” Armstrong said. “Through sport management, I have learned so much about my interests and I have had incredible experiences that strengthened my professional skills both inside and outside of the classroom.”
Through her course of study, Armstrong has gained hands-on experience in her field as a revenue generation intern for UConn Athletics and a student manager at UConn Recreation. Beyond that, during UConn Gives in April, she also marketed the very scholarship she received as part of her sport venue event management course. She said that makes receiving this scholarship particularly meaningful.
“It connects me to a person whose dedication and hard work helped build this program into what it is today,” Armstrong said. “From what I have learned, Professor Servedio was someone who treated people with respect and led through an incredible work ethic.”
After lunch, Paula Singer ’76 (ED), a businesswoman, former teacher, first-generation college graduate and UConn Foundation board member, addressed attendees. In 2015, Singer established an endowed scholarship to support Neag School students, with priority consideration for those enrolled in the UConn honors program.
“I really felt when I graduated from UConn that I had a responsibility to make sure that I was paying it forward — that I was making a difference,” she said.
Singer said that, as the first person in her family to attend college, she wanted to be a positive role model for her younger relatives and make her parents proud, but she feared being unable to keep up with coursework and paying for school. However, she found the support she received from faculty and staff to be life-changing.
“I really felt when I graduated from UConn that I had a responsibility to make sure that I was paying it forward — that I was making a difference.” — Paula Singer ’76 (ED)
“Becoming a University Scholar at UConn, the support was pivotal — pivotal for my life, pivotal for my life’s work,” Singer said. “I’m so grateful to the University and it’s one of the reasons that I continue to support.”
She advised students to prioritize self-belief, hard work, and caring deeply about the people they work with and the community they build.
“I truly believe, at this stage of life, that if you do these things, you will not only be personally successful and satisfied, but that you and your work will have lasting meaning,” Singer said. “So, please love your years at UConn and embrace your greatness to help the world.”
Guests viewed a slideshow presentation with testimonials from many scholarship recipients about what their scholarship means to them, before enjoying a performance by music education students MaKayla Barstow ’27 (ED) ’28 MA, Raven Dest ’26 (ED) ’27 MA, and Andrew Fox ’27 (ED) ’28 MA, who performed an arrangement of Lennon/McCartney’s “Blackbird” to round out the celebration.
Many donors attended the celebration to honor scholarship recipients and reflected on the indelible impact that financial support can have on college students, especially aspiring educators. Jim Degnan ’87 (CLAS) and Beth Degnan ’87 (CLAS) fund scholarships because they can support students who will then go on to change other lives as educators.
“Teachers make such a big difference in a child’s life,” Beth Degnan said. “Then, the child grows up, but always remembers some of their teachers. I think everybody’s got a special teacher, which is why it was just so easy to decide to fund a scholarship with the Neag School.”
The Degnans consider it a privilege to alleviate students of some financial burdens so they can focus on their education, skill development, and passions.
“We have been so impressed by their caliber and their desire to teach,” Beth Degnan said of the scholarship recipients. “We just want to help them follow their dreams to become exactly who they’re supposed to be.”
Jordan Velez ’27 (ED), ’28 MA, recipient of the Robert H. Hart Fellowship and the Neag School of Education Undergraduate Scholarship Fund, said she has always known she wanted to be an educator. She used to play as a teacher during pretend games with her siblings in early childhood and took notice in high school when other students struggled and fell behind.
“While I was never one of them, I always had amazing teachers that supported me whenever I needed them,” Velez said. “I knew that’s what I want to do; I want to be that person for my students.”
Velez said words alone cannot fully express her gratitude for those who fund her scholarship. It has inspired her to continue her hard work and seek to do the same when she is established in her career.
“I’m so appreciative that there are people like them that literally help pay for a stranger’s education,” Velez said. “It’s so inspirational. I hope that when I’m older and I’m established in my career, I could create a scholarship fund and support student that were just like me — that really relied on money from scholarships.”
Chereece Latoya Burrell ’22 (CLAS), ’27 MA, a recipient of the Peter J. Nicholls Scholarship in Educational Leadership, works at a Hartford-based nonprofit organization that helps high school students secure scholarships for college. For her, receiving a scholarship is a potent reminder of the importance of empowering students through financial help.
“It’s really a cycle of investment,” Burrell said. “Someone has invested in my education, and through the work I do, I have the opportunity to invest in the educational futures of other students. That support doesn’t end with one person. It continues to create opportunities for others.”
Burrell is grateful to those who perpetuate this cycle of empowerment by funding scholarships.
“I would just simply thank them for continuing to invest in students,” Burrell said regarding donors. “It truly does make a difference.”
