Hotel Trades Council Division A Scholarship Awards Announced

Yifan Pu is about to attend New York University to study Chemical & Bio-Molecular Engineering, and he will be getting lots of help on this career path from a Hotel Trades Council Division A scholarship.

The Division A scholarships were awarded to Yifan Pu and others this week at a ceremony attended by students, their family members and union officers.

Eight children of Hotel Trades Council Division A members received first-time scholarships and 17 previous Division A scholarship winners received renewals. The 25 students received a total of $54,000 in grants, and they and their family members have every reason to feel proud of what they have accomplished.

As we report annually in Hotel Voice, children of Hotel Trades Council members employed in Division A hotels are eligible for a scholarship program that is separate from the Vito J. Pitta scholarship program that covers the children of the majority of Hotel Trades Council members. The separation of Division A from the rest of the Hotel Trades Council is because Division A hotels have a separate contract with the union. Here is how this happened: Prior to 2006, Division A employees were not members of the Hotel Trades Council. Instead, they were members of Local 758 (formerly Local 144). In 2006 Local 758 merged into Local 6 and the following year, 2007, the former Local 758 employees who were employed in Division A hotels voted to transfer their membership to the Hotel Trades Council. It is children of members employed in Division A hotels (former Local 758 shops) that are eligible for the Hotel Trades Council Division A scholarship program.

Although Division A members comprise a much smaller percentage of the Hotel Trades Council’s membership than their counterparts in other hotels, their scholarship program is no less generous. With this year’s grants, a total of $203,000 in Division A scholarships and renewals have been awarded in the last four years!

“Congratulations to everyone who has won a scholarship or renewal,” Peter Ward said at the awards ceremony,“ and congratulations to their parents, as well, for all their hard work.”

Ward explained that his predecessor, Vito J. Pitta, an immigrant from Sicily, firmly believed that if immigrants and children of immigrants were given the same educational opportunities as other students in the U.S. they would succeed both academically and in their chosen careers. Ward said this is what led to Pitta to believe in the value of scholarship programs for the children of our union’s members.

Ward told the students they faced great challenges. ”This is not the country I grew up in,” he said. “For the first time in many generations many children will not be better off than their parents. This is particularly challenging because the vast majority of Americans suffering in poverty are children. That’s why I hope that no matter what you choose to do as a career you will remember this and that some portion of whatever you choose to do will be to give back to your community.”

Ward concluded by expressing confidence in the students’ abilities to stand up to the challenges they and our country face, such as income inequality. “You have earned these awards,” he said. “I believe they are just the beginning for all of you, and I wish you the very best of luck in the future.”

The eligibility requirements for Division A scholarships are similar to those for the larger Vito J. Pitta scholarship program. In addition to being children of Hotel Trades Council members employed in Division A hotels, eligible students must be either graduating high school seniors who will be attending an accredited four-year college or university or previous Division A scholarship winners who have maintained a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better over the last year.

This year there were eight new scholarship recipients. Each of these first-time winners received $2,500, for a total of $20,000 in first-time awards. In addition, 17 previous Division A scholarship winners kept their GPA above 3.0 in the last year and were thus awarded renewal scholarships of $2,000 each for 2014. This is strong evidence that the renewal program has proved to be an excellent incentive for Division A scholarship winners to do well in school.

When combined, the eight new scholarships along with the 17 renewals led to a total of $54,000 in grants in 2014 for the Division A scholarship program.
The 17 recipients of 2014 Division A renewal grants are Michael Hao Deng, Robin Boodman (whose sister, Anaalisa, won a scholarship), Carney Zeng, Stephanie Cedeno, Eugene Li, Kevin Motta, Sonam Chodon, Ngawang Lhamo, Mosammat Ayshia Ali, Zainab Baig, Niurka Liranzo, Monica Saczyk, Isabella Skomial, Anna Sadowski, Alexandra Restrepo, Robert Ng and Daina Gomez. We should add that Eugene Li, Isabella Skomial and Anna Sadowski won renewals in each of the last three years, meaning they received Division A scholarship money for each year of college!

The winners of new Division A scholarships in 2014 are Yifan Pu, Anaalisa Boodman, Jeffrey Li, Edwin Cho, Ashley Polanco, Isabella Sarlija, Cesar Liriano and Olivia Cannizaro.

Information on applying for next year’s Division A scholarships and renewals will be published next February and March in Hotel Voice. Parents are also urged to watch for periodic information in Hotel Voice about financing your children’s college education, including details on other scholarships that are available, the Union Plus website’s education section, government education loans and other forms of financial assistance.

The 2014 Division A scholarship and renewal recipients.

Peter Ward congratulates Division A scholarship renewal recipients Edwin Li and Anna Sadowski and their mothers. Edwin and Anna each received three renewals, meaning they received scholarship money from Division A every year of college!

Local 6 Secretary-Treasurer Vanessa Meade and Vice President Eddie Cedeno congratulate 2014 Division A scholarship recipient Anaalisa Boodman and her mom. Anaalisa’s brother, Robin, won a Division A scholarship last year.

Division A Benefits Coordinator Gerald Sammartino congratulates 2014 Division A scholarship winners Olivia Cannizaro and Cesar Liriano. Also present are Olivia’s father, Greg Cannizaro, an employee of the Fitzpatrick, and Cesar’s dad, Cesar, Sr., an employee of On the Avenue.

Sisters Sonam Chodon and Ngawang Lhamo both won their second Division A renewals this year. They are seen with their mom, Tsering Dolma, an employee of the Mansfield Hotel.

It’s not only a proud day for Division A scholarship and renewal winners but also for their family members, seen here taking photos of the awards ceremony.