The Community Foundation of the Endless Mountains is pleased to announce the formation of the Courtland Birchard Scholarship Fund that will provide tuition assistance to graduating seniors from Montrose Area High School who will attend Broome Community College. Mr. Birchard is an alumnus of both schools with a lasting fondness for each of them, and it is his wish with this permanent endowment to assist students who will have a similar connection. He served his country in Korea and returned to use his G.I. Bill Education Benefits for additional training. This new scholarship is his way to both pay it forward and give back to his community.
Courtland Birchard
Mr. Birchard graduated from Montrose High School in 1948 and he looks forward to providing the first award next spring during the 70th anniversary year of his own graduation. He went on to graduate from what was then Broome Technical Community College with a degree in electronics, but many local citizens will be familiar with Mr. Birchard’s intricate bluestone engravings that adorn many homes and organizations in northeastern Pennsylvania and beyond. For years he was an annual fixture at the Harford Fair where he exhibited his art work and demonstrated his technique.
Additional donations to honor Courtland Birchard’s personal generosity, and to further assist future generations of deserving Montrose students, may be sent to: the Courtland Birchard Scholarship Fund, The Community Foundation 270, Lake Avenue, Montrose, PA 18801; or online at www.community-foundation.org.
Sophie Till, Director of the Marywood String Project will do a presentation of the program at the Mountain View Elementary music room on September 21, 7:30PM immediately following the Elementary Open House which will take place 5:30PM to 7:30PM, at the Elementry School. This is the second year of the String project at Mountain View. Children who participated in the program last year will perform at the presentation. Anyone interested in having your child learn to play a string instrument, violin, viola or cello is invited to attend.
Marywood University is doing an outreach to the northeast region in Susquehanna county and Mountain View will be the center of the program. Students are invited to participate from area school districts – Blue Ridge, Susquehanna, Montrose, Elk Lake, Forest City, Lackawanna Trail, Lakeland and Carbondale. None of the school districts in the area offer string instruction. It has been many years since Mountian View has had a string program. Marywood University will expand their String Project hoping to generate interest in our area. Lessons will take place at Mountain View, after school once a week on an instrument of choice (violin, viola or cello) followed by orchestra. Students will perform as part of a larger orchestra at the string project gala Holiday Concert and Spring Concert held at Marywood in December and May.
The Marywood String Project is one of the finest programs in the nation and has been nationally recognized by the Amercian String Teahers Asociation. Over the last year, Marywood has set out to expand this program by opening satellite programs in regional schools so more children will have the opportunity to experience playing a string instrument and string education. The Mountain View String Project is the third of such a program outreach.
Please consider offering your child the unique experience of playing a beautiful string instrument and being part of this wonderful program. Parents, guardians and students from all the other nearby school districts are cordially invited to attend the presentation. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Sophie Till, Director of the Marywood String Project at sophietill@maryu.marywood.edu or 570-592-8237.
Wilkes University held its summer commencement ceremony on Sept. 10, in the Henry Gymnasium of the Arnaud C. Marts Sports and Conference Center. The university awarded 403 doctoral, master's and bachelor's degrees to students graduating after the completion of the summer 2017 semester.
Local students who achieved the milestone include the following:
Caitlyn McBride, of Clifford Township, received a Master of Science degree in Education.
Emma Noble, of Montrose, received a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in Nursing.
Heidi Page, of Susquehanna, received a Master of Science degree in Education.
Jessica Welch, of Forest City, received a Master of Science degree in Education.
The following students from Susquehanna County have completed requirements for graduation from Indiana University of Pennsylvania as of May, 2017.
Victoria Lee Sterling, Hop Bottom, Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing.
Shannon M. Bollard, Kingsley, Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Elizabeth Adeline Trowbridge, Meshoppen, Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminology.
