Lesley University students earn $5,000 memorial scholarships
Posted September 16, 2010
Two future teachers received $5,000 scholarships at Lesley University Sept. 14, the second annual scholarships distributed in memory of a Connecticut teenager.
Chad Turner, Kimberly Orefice Turner, Molly Cosel, Jenna Komen, Pamela Orefice, Pete Orefice
The Timocracy Foundation - named for 17-year-old Timothy Orefice, who was killed in a 2002 motor vehicle accident - funds Lesley University School of Education students committed to becoming K-8 teachers in New England.
“The Timocracy Foundation supports people who do good, in spite of challenges and sacrifices,” said Kimberly Orefice, Timothy’s sister and a 2007 graduate of Lesley University. “Those that choose to dedicate their careers to education have chosen an important path that benefits our entire society. We want to help them on their way to helping others.” Orefice teaches fifth grade in Lynnfield, Mass.
Applicants were required to write an essay about a K-12 teacher of theirs who inspired them to pursue a career in education.
This year’s recipients are:
• Molly Cosel, of Cambridge, Mass., originally from Tyringham, Mass, is pursuing a M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education and wrote about Geoff Ashworth, a teacher at Berkshire County Day School in Lenox, Mass.
• Jenna Koeman, of Woburn, Mass., originally from County Cork, Ireland, is pursuing a M.Ed. in Elementary Education, through Lesley’s Pike School Collaborative Program and wrote about Mr. Ryan, about a teacher at Watergrasshill National School.
Timocracy was defined by the philosopher Plato in The Republic as a government which promotes good and rules by the love of honor. Kimberly Orefice believes the definition describes her brother not just in name, but in spirit. The foundation promotes “love and education,” which Timothy Orefice declared as his most important values in a ninth-grade classroom assignment discovered after his death.
The Timocracy Foundation was established in 2008 in memory of Timothy Orefice of Madison, Conn. Orefice was killed Jan. 25, 2002 in Guilford, Conn. when the car he was driving was hit by a tow truck.
In addition to the Lesley scholarships, the Timocracy Foundation funds grants to non-profit organizations through a volunteer grantmaker program, which is by invitation only.