essex county commissioners honor winners of the 2021 new jersey association of counties (njac) foundation, pseg, investors foundation, and shi international scholarship awards

2021 NJAC Scholarship Recipients –  Neyah Johnson and Ashley Cruz

(Newark, NJ) – The Essex County Board of County Commissioners recently honored Ashley Cruz of Newark, and Nicole Johannson and Neyah Johnson, both of East Orange, for being named the Essex County recipients of the 2021 Scholarship Program Award from the New Jersey Association of Counties (NJAC) Foundation. The Board’s commendations were sponsored by acclamation and delivered to all three recipients in lieu of a presentation ceremony.

The scholarship awards recognize distinguished students from technical and vocational schools who plan to pursue higher education in the State of New Jersey. The NJAC Foundation – in conjunction with corporate partners PSEG, Investors Foundation, and SHI International – award the grants to fund the honorees continuing education at a county college, or a state college or university.

Ashley, who received the award from NJAC and PSEG, is a recent graduate of West Caldwell Tech and plans to attend New Jersey Institute of Technology where she will major in Construction Engineering/Management. She has two passions – construction engineering and being environmentally conscious. She consistently showed initiative by independently researching ways of building to maximize energy and efficiency, while proposing ways to reduce materials used in the classroom. She earned a 3.63 GPA while playing on the varsity softball team, and became a respected member of the Superintendent’s Student Council where she discussed ways of improving the school community.

Nicole, the recipient of the NJAC and Investors Foundation Award, is a recent graduate of the Donald M. Payne School of Technology where she earned a GPA of 4.2, ranking her 8th in a class of 304 seniors. She plans to attend Rutgers University – New Brunswick and will major in Forensic Chemistry. She was a member of the Cooperman’s Scholars program, which is a rigorous and selective college preparatory program, and also displayed a passion for athletics. She was the captain for track and field team and a member of the cross country team.  She was also a senior mentor and volunteered for various efforts through the student council.

Neyah, also a 2021 graduate of the Donald M. Payne School of Technology, is an excellent student who is regularly striving for success. She received the NJAC and SHI International Scholarship award, and is the type of student who approaches new situations with a positive mindset and seeks to put her best foot forward. She plans to attend Kean University and will major in Information Technology. She is very passionate about studying web design as her CTE, and has goals of becoming a software developer for a large tech company.

The Essex County Board of County Commissioners congratulates Ashley, Nicole, and Neya on being named recipients of the 2021 NJAC Foundation Scholarship Program Awards, and wishes them great success in all their future endeavors.

Looking for more information on the Essex County Board of Commissioners? The Essex County Commissioners Mobile App is now available for download on the Apple and Google Play Stores.

For Additional Information – Contact:
Kyalo Mulumba, Public Information Officer
Essex County Board of County Commissioners
973-621-4452 (phone) 973-621-5695 (fax)

kmulumba@commissioners.essexcountynj.org
Follow Us:
https://www.facebook.com/EssexCountyCommissioners
https://www.instagram.com/EssexCountyCommissioners
https://twitter.com/ECCommissioners

Phone

(973) 621-4486

Fax

(973) 621-5695

Address

Board of County Commissioners,
County of Essex
465 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.,
Room 558 Hall of Records,
Newark, New Jersey 07102