PEP, September 2005: AFSCME, Union Plus scholarships: Support for excellence

By DIANE S. WILLIAMS

Doctor, lawyer, economist, writer — these are the professional dreams that call to DC 37’s current crop of winners in the AFSCME and Union Plus scholarship programs.

A $2,000 AFSCME Family Scholarship went to Joyce Joseph, daughter of Mathew Joseph, a member and former president of Assessors, Appraisers & Mortgage Analysts Local 1757. The program typically receives 700 applications a year and awarded 13 scholarships in 2005.

“AFSCME is my dad’s security blanket,” she wrote in her essay. “Only with the confidence received from the support the union has for its members, is my dad able to successfully secure the basics for our family. The commitment to work productively and cooperatively, the urge to fight for what you truly believe in without being intimidated, and the concern for others that AFSCME represents, has been instilled into our family and all those that this organization has touched.”

The Union Plus Education Foundation received 4,000 applications this year and awarded 120 scholarships, three of which went to the children of DC 37 members.

Arpan Patel, son of Civil Service Technical Guild Local 375 member Himanshu Patel, was awarded $2,500. In the fall, the student will begin his classes at Northwestern University in Chicago. He is embarking on a seven-year accelerated

HOW TO APPLY
	AFSCME Family Scholarship To be eligible, a student must be a high school senior who will graduate in the spring of 2006 and whose parent or legal guardian is an AFSCME member. Applications are available from the AFSCME Family Scholarship Program, Attention: Education Dept., 1625 L Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20036-5687 or by e-mailing education@afscme.org or by downloading from the AFSCME Web site, www.afscme.org (click on “Scholarships”). Completed applications must be postmarked no later than Dec. 31, 2005. Union Plus Scholarship Program Members, their spouses, and dependent children (as defined by the IRS) are eligible. Applications for the 2006 scholarship can be obtained by sending a postcard with your name, local union number, telephone number and address to the Union Plus Education Foundation, c/o Union Privilege, P.O. Box 34800, Washington, DC 20043-4800. The application deadline is Jan. 31, 2006.

In his scholarship essay, the student wrote about his motivation for pursuing a medical career:

“Probably the most significant experience that solidified my ambition to become a cardio-thoracic surgeon was my grandfather’s heart attack. I grew up idolizing my grandfather. I was astonished to see how such a hard-working and genuinely nice person was able to fall victim to such a devastating attack on his life.”

Patel shared his grandfather’s story with PEP. “He worked in a factory in India and came to America with $50 in his pocket. He was able to support my mother and raise a family, because he had a vision and he took risks. It’s a classic ‘rags to riches’ story.”

$1,000 Union Plus scholarship winner Elina Tetelbaum is the daughter of Anna Kshondzer, a member of Court, County & Dept. of Probation Employees Local 1070. Entering her junior year at Harvard University, she aspires to a career in finance and the law that will allow her to challenge discrimination in the workplace.

“The female labor force participation rate is presently at an historic high,” she wrote in her essay. “Despite this, women continue to make lower wages than men do — on average, women earn 75 cents for every dollar that men earn. There is also a disparity in the sorts of jobs that men and women hold; occupational sex segregation is still prevalent despite the substantial advances women have made. I will do everything within my power to make sure that ‘equal opportunity’ is a reality, and not a catch phrase.”

A dream realized
Mariel Rose Boyarsky is the daughter of Electronic Data Processing Personnel Local 2627 member Steven Boyarsky. “I’m very grateful to the scholarship program,” said Mr. Boyarsky. “This really helps her realize her dream of going to an excellent school with a really good writing program. We told her that scholarships would help her attend the college of her choice,” he explained.

With the help of a $1,000 Union Plus scholarship, Mariel will be attending Vassar College in September. She applied to 14 schools but was undecided until she visited Vassar. “The moment I arrived I fell in love with it,” she said. “It’s the right size for me. The people are amazing and it has a strong English program. It felt just right.”

More than 40 unions participated in the Union Plus Scholarship Program this year. “This kind of program emphasizes the purpose of all unions,” said Arpan Patel. “It means more to me than any other because it’s open to all union members and it stands for the larger mission of the labor movement.”

Mrs. Kshondzer is extremely proud of her daughter, Elina. “I didn’t expect that she would be chosen out of so many applicants,” she said. “It’s a big honor and a big help!”

“I feel that it’s a great honor that my son was awarded the scholarship from the union program,” said Mr. Patel. “A lot of kids look to it for help and they should be encouraged to try and get it.”

Scholarship fundraiser Sept. 11
In addition to the AFSCME and Union Plus programs, DC 37 and many locals offer members’ children and grandchildren a range of scholarships and academic awards. The DC 37 Education Committee, chaired by Local 2054 President Joan Reed, makes the DC 37 scholarships possible through fundraising efforts, such as the Sept. 11 “World of Learning” awards celebration and dinner-dance. Tickets to the affair at Antun’s are $100 and can be obtained by calling Larry Kelly at 212-341-4999.