Congratulations to our MCAA22 Scholarship Recipients and Award Winners

JRGF Scholarships 

Mark Rogers, President of the John R. Gentille Foundation, announced the recipients of the following scholarships at the Awards of Excellence Breakfast at MCAA22.  He noted that the students receiving scholarships were selected for their academic performance, leadership skills, interest in developing a career in the mechanical industry, work ethic, and technical abilities. 

Alan P. O’Shea Memorial Scholarship 

Albert Pantoja of Cypress College and Brodee Paul of the University of Nebraska each received a $2,500 scholarship check in honor of Alan P. O’Shea.  The scholarship is sponsored by MCA of New Jersey.

Foster McCarl, Jr. Memorial Scholarship 

Alayna Trautman of Alfred State College received a $5,000 scholarship check in memory of Foster McCarl, Jr., without whose vision there would be no foundation. McCarl’s Inc. is the scholarship sponsor. 

Reilly Family Memorial Scholarship

Joani Lico of Fairleigh Dickinson University received a scholarship check for $5,000 in honor of the Reilly family, honoring Wayne Reilly, Emmitt Reilly and Patrick Reilly.  John W. Danforth Company is the scholarship’s sponsor. 

William A. Bianco, Jr. Memorial Scholarship 

Luke Bennett of the University of Nebraska received a $5,000 scholarship check in memory of the foundation’s former President and MCAA Distinguished Service Award (DSA) recipient William A. “Bill” Bianco, Jr. The scholarship is sponsored by Kinetics.

Josam Endowed Scholarship

Hailey Brennan of the University of Maryland, College Park received a $2,500 scholarship underwritten by the Josam Company. This annual scholarship is awarded to the recipient during their sophomore, junior and senior years, provided all qualifications continue to be met.  2021-2022 is Hailey’s 3^rd and final year to receive the Josam Endowed scholarship.

FERGUSON – Women in the Mechanical Industry Scholarship

Sabrina Pavlova of Missouri State University and Emily Woodsmall of the University of Nebraska each received a $5,000 scholarship, sponsored by Ferguson, to recognize high-achieving female students working towards a degree relative to the mechanical industry.

Thomas J. Wanner Scholarship

Amaya Caggino of the University of Maryland, College Park received a $5,000 scholarship check in honor of the recently retired MCA/MSCA of Cleveland Executive Director, Thomas J. Wanner.  This is a new scholarship for 2021/2022 that is sponsored by MCA/MSCA of Cleveland. 

DeWalt – Patriot Scholarship

Also new this year is the DeWalt Patriot Scholarship, designed to recognize two veterans of the United States military who have valiantly served their country and have chosen to enter a career related to mechanical contracting.  Thank you to DeWalt for honoring our military and to our scholarship recipients for their service.  Abbie Raudabaugh of Indiana State University (Veteran of the United States Army, Military Police) and Nathaniel Golus of Iowa State University (United States Navy Seabee Veteran) each received a $5,000 scholarship.   

New Student Chapter Chartered

MCAA welcomed its newest student chapter by granting a charter to SUNY Buffalo State College.  The new chapter is sponsored by Western New York Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Contractors.

Educator of the Year 

Jacob Nelson of Missouri State University was recognized as the Educator of the Year based on his mentoring, mechanical industry knowledge, chapter activity participation, and involvement and creation of student-focused networking opportunities with local mechanical contractors through their local MCAA chapter.  In addition to a trophy, he received a check for $5,000. 

Student Chapter of the Year 

The University of Maryland, College Park was selected as the 2021-2022 Student Chapter of the Year. The Career Development Committee chose the winner after evaluating how well the chapter promotes an understanding of the mechanical industry and the career opportunities we offer. They received a check for $3,000. 

MCAA Student Chapter Competition 

McMaster University won the top prize of $10,000 and a trophy for their outstanding work on this year’s Student Chapter Competition project, the Lake Placid Olympic Center Revitalization. (MCAA would like to extend a special thank you to Mollenberg-Betz, Inc., Buffalo, New York for providing the project this year.)

Missouri State was the runner-up, placing second and receiving a trophy and check for $5,000. 

Kansas State and Kent State rounded out the final four. Each of these Honorable Mention finalists received trophies and $2,500.

Six additional teams that just missed the final four were recognized with Merit Trophies and checks for $1,000. They are, in alphabetical order: 

• Ball State University
• Binghamton University
• Fairleigh Dickinson University
• Milwaukee School of Engineering
• Pittsburg State University
• University of Nebraska
  

Most Valuable Presenter

The Career Development Committee recognized a student who did the best job presenting their proposal, whether or not their team won.  The audience members voted live between schools and ultimately Leisha Fernando of McMaster University was awarded a trophy, a $500 gift card and the title of 2021-2022 Most Valuable Presenter.