The Punta Gorda Garden Club is delighted to award PGGC Higher Education Scholarships of $1,500 each to four students from local high schools and colleges. These very deserving young men and women have demonstrated academic excellence, extra-curricular involvement and clearly defined goals for their future studies and career plans.

Nicholas Nease graduated from Port Charlotte High School in 2022, and is a previous scholarship recipient. He is attending Duke University with a major in Environmental Sciences and Policy at the Nicholas School of Environment (NSE). He continues to excel at Duke University and is pursuing a dual program which includes a master’s degree at Duke in Environmental Management. He plans for a career in convincing people of the severity of combating climate change in order to change behaviors toward the environment.

Click Here to see Nicholas’s video

Erik Courtney, a previous scholarship recipient, graduated from Charlotte High School in 2022. He attends Florida Gulf Coast University, majoring in Environmental Engineering and Environmental Geology (double major). Currently, he is researching soil changes after Hurricane Ian’s impact. He has also studied virtually through Dartmouth University on Greenland’s ice melt. He presented research in December 2022 at a conference in New Orleans. In June, he plans to visit Hawaii to study the effects of Mauna Loa erupting on the soil there.

Click Here to see Erik’s video

Bryn Atherholt, graduating from Lemon Bay High, will attend Florida State University, majoring in Marine Biology. She has completed in-depth marine research projects and complex biological experiments during her high school education. She has received numerous awards in sports, leadership, and academics. Bryn has pursued a rigorous course of study and has achieved at a high level while being actively involved in extracurricular and community activities.

Click Here to see Bryn’s video.

Jax Mendelsohn, a previous scholarship recipient, graduated from Lemon Bay High School in 2022. He currently attends the University of Florida, majoring in Environmental Science. He hopes to be accepted into the combination degree program, which would allow a combined bachelor’s and master’s degree in Environmental Science. He, then, plans to attend law school to pursue a career in environmental regulation and compliance law. His intellect and work ethic have helped him to achieve a grade point average of 4.0 (all A’s) during his first semester at the University of Florida.

Click Here to see Jax’s video

Applications for 2024 Punta Gorda Garden Club Scholarships will be available in January on PGGC.writing.io - Collections - Scholarship. For more information contact Scholarship Chair, Nancy Knaus, at nancyknaus@yahoo.com or 413-297-7187.