SPRINGFIELD – Big Y World Class Markets selected over 335 academically-outstanding students from communities surrounding their stores to receive a total of over $232,000 in college scholarships for the 2014-2015 academic year. Unlike most area scholarships, these awards are based on academic merit, regardless of financial need. With Big Y’s assistance, students from all over Massachusetts and Connecticut are attending schools such as Western New England University, Westfield State, UMASS, UCONN, the University of Hartford, Springfield College, and Quinnipiac University this fall. Top recipients were honored at a scholarship awards ceremony held at the Big Y Store Support Center in Springfield in May.
Big Y’s scholarship program reflects their longstanding commitment to education and is considered to be one of the most competitive in New England, with thousands of students applying each year. Since this program was founded in 1984, $3.5 million has been awarded to more than 4,700 students.
“We are grateful to be in a position to fill a real need in the communities we serve by recognizing the hard work, dedication to excellence and outstanding academic achievement of so many fine young men and women who are our neighbors in our marketing area. This exercise also serves as a humbling reminder to us all to continue to strive for excellence,” said Donald H. D’Amour, Big Y chairman and CEO. “My personal congratulations go out to all of our winners.”
What also sets Big Y’s scholarship program apart from others is that it is open to all of their customers and customers’ dependents, as well as employees and employee dependents. Awards are given to students in the categories of high school graduate, undergraduate, community college, graduate, and non-traditional. There is also a special category within the Big Y scholarship program that honors dependents of the law enforcement officers, firefighters, and military service members who risk their lives every day to protect and serve local communities. This year, nine scholarships have been awarded to dependents of law enforcement officers, firefighters, and military service members.
Scholarship applications for the upcoming 2015-2016 academic year will be available at all of Big Y’s 63 locations, including Fresh Acres and Table & Vine, from mid-October through January. Applications will also be available at school guidance offices within Big Y’s market area. To be eligible, a student’s permanent residence or school must be located within western and central Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, or the state of Connecticut. Completed applications must be submitted by February 1, 2015.
In addition to its scholarship program, Big Y’s educational commitments include: the D’Amour Library at Western New England College; the D’Amour Hall for Business, Communication and Technology at Bay Path College; and free supermarket school tour programs to students of all ages focusing on good nutrition and relating shopping skills to the importance of reading, math, and other school disciplines.
Still another of Big Y’s educational initiatives, the Education Express program, has helped more than 2,000 local schools earn over $13 million in teaching materials and educational equipment.
Big Y has also published and mass-distributed education-related calendars and Educating Kids magazines and, in 1993, launched the Homework Helpline, a toll-free telephone assistance service staffed by qualified teachers who guide students and parents through homework questions. For 19 years, Big Y’s Homework Helpline answered an average of 400 calls and e mails per week, having assisted over 130,000 students, parents and grandparents. Big Y is also proud to sponsor Curious George in conjunction with WGBY public television which provides hours of educational programming for children.
Headquartered in Springfield, Big Y is one of the largest independently owned supermarket chains in New England. Proud to be family owned and operated, they currently operate 63 stores throughout Connecticut and Massachusetts with over 10,000 employees.
Founded in 1936 by brothers Paul and Gerald D’Amour, the store was named after an intersection in Chicopee, where two roads converge to form a “Y”.
