For immediate release: Friday, October 9, 2009

For more information:  Derrick Jones, (202) 596-1216 or Tony DelGiorno (217) 522-6000

URSULINE ACADEMY FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS FOR 2009-2010 ACADEMIC YEAR

 With the new academic year in full swing, the Ursuline Academy Foundation announced that twelve students have each received a $500 scholarship to continue their faith-based education.  Five of the recipients are displaced Ursuline Academy students who are in their senior year at Lutheran High School.  The other recipients are students at seven of Springfield's Catholic elementary schools.

"We are proud of these students and their accomplishments," said Msgr. John Ossola, president of the Ursuline Academy Foundation.  "One of the central goals of the Ursuline Academy Foundation is to continue the tradition of academic excellence instilled in the community by the Ursuline Sisters.  We hope these scholarships will keep that tradition alive and well."

Founded in the wake of Ursuline Academy's closure in May 2007, the Foundation established a scholarship fund for the 2008-2009 academic year to assist former Ursuline students displaced by the Academy's closure as well as students enrolled in one of the city's Catholic elementary schools.  Scholarships are awarded based on academic achievement, demonstration of community service embodied in the Ursuline motto Serviam (I will serve), and financial need.

The Ursuline Academy Foundation Scholarship Fund benefits from private donations as well as proceeds from the annual Chicken Dinner co-sponsored every May with the Knights of Columbus Council #4175.  For more information, visit the Foundation's website at www.uafoundation.us.

This year's high school recipients are: Kellby Gietl, Lauren Acton, Emily Gladden, Laura Mayfield, and Hunter Ansell.  All are displaced Ursuline students attending Lutheran High School.  This year’s elementary school recipients are: Zachary Matthew Scott (Christ the King), Madie Nelson (Little Flower), Christopher Mostaka (Cathedral), Alyssa Guinan (St. Joseph’s), Brett Vicari (St. Aloysius), Kaysay Johnson (Blessed Sacrament), and Mitch Kerr (St. Agnes)

The Ursuline Academy Foundation is established as a 501(c)(3) organization with purposes that include, but are not limited to preserving the historical heritage of Ursuline Academy in Springfield, Illinois, and furthering the advancement of religious education based upon the principles of the Roman Catholic Church and, in particular, the Ursuline Sisters, foundresses of Ursuline Academy.