Center Players Announces Scholarship Winners

The Michelle Catania Children’s Theater Program and announced the winners of the 2011-2012 Michelle Catania Children’s Theater Program Scholarship. This year’s scholarships were awarded to Kamaria Baysmore, of Rahway, who will be attending Kean Universitu, and Katie Grey Coleman, of Tampa, Fl., who will be attending the University of Central Florida in Orlando.

"We commend the dedication, achievement and contributions of these young, talented women in both academics and community service," said Maggie Gunther, administrator of the Michelle Catania Children’s Theater Program. "These scholarships pay tribute to Michelle’s enduring legacy. The scholarship recipients are fine students who excelled in school and community service while dealing with cancer in their family life."

The scholarship was established to honor the legacy of Michelle Catania, who died of breast cancer in 2010 after a 10-year fight. Catania's family members and friends established the Michelle  Children’s Theater Program in partnership with the Center Players. The program provides children’s theater programming and awards one $500 scholarship a year in each of the states Catania lived in, Florida and New Jersey. To qualify for the scholarship, a member of the applicant’s immediate family must have had a serious bout with cancer.

"We are thrilled to award these scholarships to Kamaria and Katie," said Bernice Garfield-Szita, president of Center Players. "By supporting the next generation of academically successful students involved in theater and community service, we pay tribute to Michelle and her vision of young adults involved in the arts."

For the 2011-2012 academic year, the program received numerous applications from students planning to attend many different colleges and universities in both Florida and New Jersey. Selection criteria includes academic performance, letters of recommendation, an essay about how cancer affected the student’s life, and qualifying letters from the student’s parent or guardian.

More information about the Michelle Catania Children's Theater Program Scholarship, visit the organization's Web site.