The Board of Directors of the Suffolk Art League has announced the winners of the 2013-14 Chip Picot Memorial Student Scholarship.

“This year, there were 16 applicants, and the selection committee had a difficult job determining who would receive funding,” said Linda Bunch, executive director. The scholarship selection committee chose seven students to receive a total of $1,500 to be used toward their artistic endeavors.

The Chip Picot Memorial Scholarship is offered to students who will be in grades six through 12 in the next school year. Students must either live in or attend school in Suffolk.

Public, private and home-school students are eligible to receive funding to help them begin or continue to explore the artistic area of their choice whether visual, performing or literary art.

This years’ recipients were:

• Makayla Snyder — Makayla is a student at Kilby Shores Elementary School and will be attending Forest Glen Middle School next year. She will use her scholarship funds to take private ballet lessons this summer. “Makayla has a beautiful singing voice, is an excellent dancer and loves to perform,” said Penny Key, music specialist. “I have no doubt that Makayla would be a valuable asset to any dance program.”
• Emma Carlson — Emma is a rising sixth grader at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy. She will continue her piano lessons with her scholarship. “She is diligent and shows her ability to work at every program I present to her,” stated Ms. Barnes her piano teacher. “I loved the piano the second after I started. Hopefully, I’ll get better and better,” Emma said.
• Sherice Fleming — Sherice is a student at Kings Fork Middle School and will use her funding to improve her visual arts skills through classes and workshops. “Being an artist is not a profession, it is a calling,” Sherice stated in her essay. “Most artists just seek a way to let out their emotions through something other than the verbal language.”
• Tiecura Hill — Tiecura also attends Kings Fork Middle School and will use her scholarship to improve her visual art talents. She will purchase professional art materials and tools “so I can practice and get better,” she said. “I just want to change lives through my artwork.”
• Guy Purnell: Guy is a student at John Yeates Middle School and will use his scholarship to take private violin lessons. “I believe he has a gift, especially for improvisation,” said Linda Hurwitz, orchestra director. Purnell stated that “playing the violin helps me focus on what I need to accomplish each day.”
• Rachel Gist — Rachel attends Kings Fork High School. She plays the trumpet in the concert band and wants to take up the French horn. Her scholarship will go toward instrument rental and private lessons. “She has been an invaluable asset to the King’s Fork High School Band program,” said Jason Taylor, the band director at King’s Fork High School. “Providing her with a scholarship to study music privately will undoubtedly offer her positive instruction that will allow her to develop into an amazing musician.”
• Karin Kleps — A student at Nansemond River High School, Karin will purchase professional art materials in order to create work for her college entrance portfolio. “Painting and drawing have always been a love of mine, but I have recently embraced an interest in photography,” she stated. Mr. French, her art teacher, stated, “There have been very few art students that I’ve had over my years of teaching that appear to be better prepared for success in art than Karin.”

“Our student scholarship program strives to get students interested in the arts by providing funding for them to explore their passion for the arts,” Bunch said. “Often family finances do not allow for private music or dance lessons, art classes or other opportunities to pursue the arts. We hope these scholarships will provide positive experiences for Suffolk students.”

For more information about the Suffolk Art League and programs offered, visit www.suffolkartleague.org or call 925-0448.