BELLEVILLE —
Belleville High School senior Kayla DiAndrea has been awarded a $1,000 Grow NJ Kids scholarship, it was announced by BHS.
The state Department of Human Services, Division of Family Development Grow NJ Kids scholarship initiative offers tuition payments to support candidates for courses leading toward a Child Development Associate (CDA) credential, associate’s degree, B.A. and P-3 teacher certification.
Aside from winning the scholarship, DiAndrea has been hired for a full-time job at the Sandy Lane Nursery School in Belleville, where she has been working through the BHS Transition program.
That program, coordinated for the past three years by Leonard Wilson, provides high school juniors and seniors the chance to work during school hours to develop career skills. BHS students, for example, work in places like the Sandy Lane Nursery School, ShopRite and the Fitness Center.
Its aim, Wilson said, is “to empower young people to transition from school to adult life as responsible, contributing citizens by maximizing employment potential, independence and integration into the community.”
Kayla thanked the program and Sandy Lane co-directors Jenny Clarena Grande and Angela Cheney for mentoring her along the way. Several other Belleville student workers have also secured paid jobs through the program.
“I’m excited, I’m grateful. If students want an amazing learning experience, they should consider applying for participation in the program. I plan to continue my education and get certified by the CDA. I want to be an exceptional student and worker,” DiAndrea said.
To qualify for a Grow NJ Kids scholarship, applicants must successfully complete the AccuPlacer and/or TABE basic-skills test at the college they will be attending, maintain a grade of B or better in a for-credit class taken on scholarship and an overall grade average of 3.0 while successfully completing 120 CDA-training hours.
Applicants must have also been employed six months during the scholarship program and for one year thereafter after finishing all coursework.
For more information about the scholarship, visit www.pinj.org/upload/Grow_NJ_Kids_Scholarship_Information_updated_June_2015.pdf.
