Three Earn TPP Pathways Scholarships
Cooper Keeley, left, Brianna Rourke, and Dominic Longobardi are the 2024 recipients of Pathways Scholarships.
Three Southern Maryland graduates have been awarded The Patuxent Partnership/CSM Pathways Scholarships.
TPP congratulates 2024 Pathways recipients Brianna Rourke of Chopticon High School, Cooper Keeley of Calvert High School, and Dominic Longobardi of Chopticon High School. Mr. Longobardi also is currently in the Tech Jobs Rule apprentice program.
The scholarship program was established in 2018 to supports students who plan to enroll in the College of Southern Maryland mechanical or electrical engineering associate degree program and then continue to University of Maryland program at the University System of Maryland at Southern Maryland to earn a bachelor’s degree in mechanical or electrical engineering at UMD’s A. James Clark School of Engineering.
The scholarships cover the cost of tuition, fees, and books for up to two years.
“The partnership between CSM and TPP is focused on building our region’s workforce pipeline. By investing in students at the College of Southern Maryland, The Patuxent Partnership is supporting STEM education and increasing access, pathways, and connections. These students will work with the Navy and other employers once they have completed their degree program. Community colleges are the greatest vehicle for workforce development in our community,” said Bonnie Green, TPP executive director.
Tom Phelan, TPP board member and chair of the Academic Outreach Committee, offered his congratulations.
“It was certainly a pleasure to personally interview the candidates for these scholarships. All were extremely motivated and dedicated students as evidenced by their engineering interest early in their academic career. Along with their dedication, they also had family and teacher support to spur their participation in the engineering field. I would expect them to all be very successful in the future,” Mr. Phelan said
“The opportunities provided to CSM students through The Patuxent Partnership’s scholarship, internship program, and career placement is a wonderful example of how organizations can work together to enhance the lives of Southern Maryland residents. We are honored to work alongside the Partnership to provide opportunities for our new TPP-CSM scholarship recipients Briana Rourke, Cooper Keeley, and Dominic Longobardi and we can’t wait to welcome them to our campuses,” said Dr. Yolanda Wilson, CSM president.
“The Patuxent Partnership Pathways Scholarship is perfect for me as it further educates me in mechanical engineering and gives me future opportunities within Southern Maryland,” Mr. Keeley said.
“The Patuxent Partnership Scholarship will provide the necessary financial support for me to pursue my dream of becoming a mechanical engineer, so I can use my skills to innovate and make a positive impact on the world,” Ms. Rourke said.
“Since I enjoyed the [Dr.] James A Forest Technology Center engineering program so much, I wanted to explore what it would be like to be a real-world engineer, so I decided to pursue the Tech Jobs Rule Apprenticeship Maryland Program. This apprenticeship program, in which I am currently participating, I get real-world experience in the field of engineering at NAWCAD WOLF. My hope is that after I have achieved my mechanical engineering degree made possible through the TPP Pathways scholarship, I will be able to return to NAWCAD to pursue a career as a mechanical engineer,” Mr. Longobardi said.
About The Patuxent Partnership
The Patuxent Partnership is a nonprofit member organization that fosters collaboration between government, industry, and academia to advance education through STEM-based initiatives; to advance technology through speaker programs, forums, and networking; to advance science and technology transfer through the exchange of ideas, information, and data related to technologies; and to increase workforce development through an array of initiatives.
To learn more about The Patuxent Partnership and its programs, visit its Leader member page.
