CUNY on a Roll In the Battle For Scholarships
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
Ryan Merola learned he had won the prestigious Truman Scholarship at a surprise party thrown by the president of Brooklyn College Friday.
For the 20-year-old, who lives at home with his parents in Marine Park, it was a joyous ending to an arduous nine-month application process.
It was also a triumph for the City University of New York, which seems to be on a roll on the scholarship front. This academic year, students have also earned Goldwater and Marshall scholarships. These laurels may be routine at universities such as Harvard and Yale, but they are new for CUNY, which has named only 5 Truman scholars and 5 Rhodes scholars in its history.
“CUNY students are competing successfully for the most prestigious awards at the highest levels of academic achievement,” said the chancellor of City University of New York, Matthew Goldstein. “This is a tribute to the students and their families, our dedicated faculty, and the reforms implemented at CUNY over the past several years.”
Specifically benefiting Mr. Merola, a political science and philosophy major, is the honors college program, which was started in the fall of 2001. It provides full tuition, an academic stipend, a laptop, and intense advisement.
“With the honors program, the decision to attend Brooklyn was a no-brainer,” Mr. Merola said, noting he comes from a Brooklyn College family – his parents and his grandmother also studied there. To help talented students achieve even more, the honors college also runs a program that guides students through their scholarship applications. Qualifying students are tapped in their sophomore year, and receive advice on their essays as well as some grueling mock interviews.
When the actual Truman Scholarship interview came March 15, Mr. Merola wore a black suit, white shirt, and his lucky tie (he owns more than 30 and describes himself as a “tie freak”).
As for the future, Mr. Merola has started to think about Stanford and Harvard (his scholarship provides $30,000 toward graduate education) and hopes some day to work in New York City government.
