OCC Scholarship Event Celebrates Students, Donors

OAKLAND COUNTY, Michigan – The OCC Foundation celebrated its 24th Annual Scholarship Luncheon honoring students who received scholarships and the donors who supported them. OCC awarded 260 scholarships totaling $150,594 in the 2015-2016 academic year.

"OCC's mission is to remain accessible to all and promote student success," said OCC Foundation Interim Executive Director Candy Geeter. "We celebrate scholarship recipients for their hard work and thank our donors for generously supporting student success in such a significant way."

Five scholarship recipients spoke about the impact scholarships have had on their lives as OCC students, including:

  • Davida Reed-Grayer of Waterford is one class away from earning her Associate in Business Administration and hopes to open her own business. Reed-Grayer received the OCC Gala Endowed Scholarship.
  • Heather Duenas of Pontiac will be graduating with honors from OCC this semester and transferring to Oakland University to pursue a degree in elementary education. Duenas received the Womencenter Scholarship.
  • Kayla Tyus of Farmington Hills is a dual-enrolled Oakland Early College high school/college student. She plans to graduate from high school and OCC in 2017 with an Associate in Science. Tyus received the OCC Faculty Association Scholarship.
  • Hong Le of Warren is one class away from earning an Associate in Business Administration with a major in Accounting. Le received the Joseph & Mary Lorencz Scholarship.
  • Allison Vergara of Highland is majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance and plans to transfer to University of Michigan next fall. Vergara received the Cervantes-Paramo Scholarship.

OCC's award-winning Culinary Studies Institute served lunch to attending donors, scholarship recipients, college officials and student-awardees' family members.

For more information about supporting opportunities for student achievement at OCC contact OCCFoundation@oaklandcc.edu.

About the OCC Foundation

The OCC Foundation was formed in 1979 to receive private contributions from members of the community, corporations, philanthropic foundations and alumni to provide opportunities for students and to enhance the quality of education at the college. Gift dollars support scholarships and special programs. All gifts to the OCC Foundation are currently eligible for federal tax deductions.

About OCC

With multi campus system throughout Oakland County, Oakland Community College is committed to providing academic and developmental experiences that allows each student to reach their full potential and enhance the diverse communities they serve. It offers degrees and certificates in approximately 100 career fields and university transfer degrees in business, science and the liberal arts. More than a million students have enrolled in the college since it opened in 1965.

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Contact: Bridget M. Kavanaugh | Marketing & Communications | (248) 341-2020 | bmkavana@oaklandcc.edu