Four recent graduates of Warren County Technical School were honored by the Warren County Board of County Commissioners for scholarships they received from a statewide organization associated with county government.

Every year, the NJAC Foundation, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the New Jersey Association of Counties, helps raise funds from corporate sponsors to provide scholarships to county vocational-technical school graduates who plan on continuing their education at a county college or state college or university in New Jersey.

The county Commissioners recognized 2024 Warren Tech graduates David Boothe, Casey Beruta, Elizabeth May, and Ava Battle, highlighting their academic achievements and extracurricular involvement. Boothe, Beruta and May were presented with their scholarships while Battle, who was unable to attend due to a previous commitment, received her scholarship award previously.

“Thank you to NJAC and these corporate sponsors for their continued support of the scholarship program,” Commissioner Director James R. Kern III said. “These students exemplify what’s great about Warren County. I look forward to their future success!” he added.

Commissioner Jason J. Sarnoski praised the recipients and thanked NJAC for conducting the scholarship program, which awarded more than $90,000 to college-bound graduates this year. As a father who is sending his son to college this fall, Sarnoski noted that he knows how expensive college is and “every dollar helps” when it comes to financing higher education.

Commissioner Lori Ciesla added her congratulations, saying she was proud of the student and their achievements.

“The caliber of the candidates gets better and better every year. The GPAs just floor me,” said NJAC Executive Director John Donnadio, who attended the presentation. “Best of luck as you move forward in college,” he told the recipients.

The scholarships were funded by four different corporations who contributed to the NJAC Foundation.

SHI International Corporation provided a grant of $5,250 to the NJAC Foundation to fund a $250 scholarship in every county for students planning on pursuing a degree in technology or cyber security. The SHI Scholarship for Warren County was awarded to David Boothe, a Stewartsville resident who had a GPA of 3.44 and was a past Student of the Month recipient. He was part of the Boys JV Basketball team and earned a certification for Excel. Over the past two summers he was a technology intern at Warren Tech and Greenwich Elementary School. Boothe plans to attend Warren County Community College and major in Cybersecurity and Unmanned Systems.

AT&T doubled its award this year and granted $21,000 to the NJAC Foundation to provide $1,000 scholarships for students pursuing a certificate or degree in computer science, cyber security, information systems, data analytics and other related fields. This year’s Warren County recipient was Phillipsburg resident Casey Beruta, who was ranked 22nd in this year’s graduating class with a GPA of 3.76. Beruta was in theater club and yearbook club, and attended Skills USA, winning 1st place in TV and Video Production at the state level and 2nd Place in the national competition. Beruta plans to attend Montclair State University and study Animation/Visual Effects and Filmmaking.

South Jersey Industries, or SJI for short, also increased its award to the NJAC Foundation and provided $1,000 scholarships in 10 counties, including Warren. The SJI Scholarship was awarded to Elizabeth May of Hope, who had a GPA of 4.0, ranked 14^th in her class, and was part of the National Society of High School Scholars. May’s hobbies include writing novels, reading, and spending time outdoors doing things like kayaking and hiking, all while working in a dental office as a Sterilization tech. She will be majoring in writing at Centenary University, and hopes to be a published author.

The company Amazon provided a $21,000 grant to the NJAC Foundation to fund scholarships in all 21 counties, and this year’s Amazon Scholarship recipient from Warren County was Ava Battle of Alpha. Battle was ranked 16th in her class with a GPA of 3.93 and was involved in nearly every club including Key Club, Military Appreciation Club, National Honors Society, theater, and student government. She plans to attend Warren County Community College and major in primary and secondary education.

More photos can be downloaded from www.warrencountynj.gov/Home/Components/News/News/618/14