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Six outstanding students from Bluefield College were recently recognized by the Beazley Foundation and the Virginia College Fund (VCF) for their academic achievement and student leadership.

Chris Shoemaker

October 17, 2012

During the Virginia College Fund’s 23rd Annual Scholars Seminar, hosted by Bluefield College on October 9, the Beazley Foundation and the VCF honored Aaron Georgiades, Micah Johnson, Hannah Spicer-Owens and Breanne Vencill as Beazley Scholars, and recognized Jessica Looney and Emily Reynolds as Virginia Collegium Scholars.

The Beazley Foundation established its Scholars Program with the Virginia College Fund in 1988 as a way to recognize and support outstanding students from each of the five member schools of the VCF: Bluefield College, Averett University, Eastern Mennonite University, Ferrum College and Virginia Intermont College. The program also is designed to fulfill the vision of its founder, Frederick C. Beazley, a self-made millionaire from Portsmouth, Virginia, who pulled himself out of poverty to provide students with the higher education he never had.

In 1993, through gifts from other Virginia College Fund supporters, new endowments were established for each of the VCF schools to recognize additional exceptional students as Virginia Collegium Scholars. In addition to receiving vital scholarship assistance, the Beazley and Virginia Collegium Scholars are recognized during the VCF’s Annual Scholars Seminar and Luncheon, hosted on a rotating basis at each of the five member schools.

“This is always a highlight of our year when we host the Virginia College Fund Scholars Luncheon,” said Dr. David Olive, president of Bluefield College, about entertaining and acknowledging the scholars this year. “It is an honor for us to host this event and recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of these outstanding students.”

Beazley and Virginia Collegium Scholars are selected based on their academic achievement, student leadership, and service to the community. The focus, officials said, is to reward students who work hard to fulfill their own potential and to serve the campus community, while at the same time making higher education more accessible through scholarship assistance.

“Our commitment is to see that, if any way possible, every young person in Virginia has access to a college education,” said Judge Richard S. Bray, president of the Beazley Foundation, “and since its founding, the Beazley Foundation has been committed to that cause.”

Bluefield College’s Georgiades, Johnson, Spicer-Owens and Vencill received Beazley Scholarships for 2012-2013. A native of Virginia Beach, Virginia, Georgiades is a sophomore majoring in business administration with a 3.96 grade point average (GPA). He also is a member of BC’s men’s varsity soccer team.

Johnson, a Beazley Scholar from Tazewell, Virginia, is a sophomore majoring in business accounting. He holds a 3.87 GPA and is treasurer of the school’s business competition team Phi Beta Lambda and a member of the voice ensemble Masterworks Chorale.

A native of Max Meadows, Virginia, Spicer-Owens is a senior majoring in English with teacher licensure and special education endorsements and a 3.92 GPA. A published author of poetry and fiction, she also is a member of the Student Virginia Education Association (SVEA) and the education honor society Pi Lambda Theta.

Vencill, from Tazewell, Virginia, is a senior exercise and sports science (ESS) major with a 3.76 GPA. She also is a member of the women’s softball team, a student athletic trainer for the Rams football program, and a tutor for anatomy, physiology and ESS courses.

BC’s Looney and Reynolds earned Virginia Collegium Scholarships for 2012-2013. Looney, from Bastian, Virginia, is a senior majoring in art with a 3.78 GPA. She also is president of the Art Club and the Kappa Pi art society.

A native of Falls Mills, Virginia, Reynolds is a senior majoring in interdisciplinary studies with teacher licensure. She is president of SVEA and a senator for the Student Government Association. She also is a member of Pi Lambda Theta National Honor Society.

Fifteen other students from Averett, Eastern Mennonite, Ferrum and Virginia Intermont were recognized as 2012-2013 Beazley and Virginia Collegium Scholars during the 23rd Annual Scholars Seminar. In addition, Dr. Rob Merritt, dean of BC╒s College of Arts and Letters, spoke about the difference between vocation and avocation and the importance of cultivating creativity in teaching and learning, and James Dill, president of the Virginia College Fund, spoke about the mission of the VCF.

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