Pine-Richland student news for the week of June 8, 2022

Pine-Richland High School junior Elizabeth Shaffer has been selected as a Coolidge Scholar.

The Coolidge Scholarship is an annually awarded, full-ride, presidential scholarship that covers a student’s tuition, room, board and expenses for four years of undergraduate study. It is administered by the state estate/foundation of former President Calvin Coolidge. It also covers attendance at annual meetings with other scholars and various networking opportunities in Washington, D.C., and in Vermont at the Coolidge estate.

Shaffer is interested in studying engineering along with the humanities to bring a unique approach to public policy. To share her love of engineering and history, she designed and directed “Crossing the Rhine with Caesar,” a workshop teaching middle school students to bridge engineering principles in the context of ancient Roman history. Shaffer has also participated in Pennsylvania’s Technology Student Association Teams Engineering competition with Pine-Richland High School.

To further pursue her interest in public policy, Shaffer completed the Hillsdale College online course “Public Policy from a Constitutional Viewpoint,” in addition to her rigorous high school studies. She was selected to participate in the Miracle in Rwanda Global Classroom, a virtual, international student workshop focusing on the causes of genocide. Shaffer is a member of the National Honor Society and served as captain of Pine-Richland’s Hometown High-Q team.

As a leader in her community, Shaffer volunteers in the children’s programs at her church and for the Teen Leadership Project, a mission outreach fostering team building and community service. She has been a competitive year-round swimmer for nine years.

She was elected captain of her varsity swim team and she helped her varsity 200 medley relay team set a new team and pool record, placing third at the WPIAL Championships in 2022. Elizabeth also placed sixth in 2022 at the WPIAL Swim and Dive Championships and 17th at the PIAA State Meet in the individual 100-yard breaststroke.

In her club swim team, Shaffer competes at an elite level, qualifying for the USA Swimming Sectional, Zone, and Futures Championship meets. In 2020, Elizabeth ran in the varsity cross country team for her school. Shaffer enjoys volunteering as a swim instructor for young children and working as a lifeguard. She is the daughter of Jeremy and Stacey Shaffer.

Jesse Berzonski of Gibsonia has been named to the Spring 2022 Dean’s High Honors List at Marietta College.

Alexis Mlecko graduated from James Madison University in May with a bachelor’s degree in business management.

The following students graduated from Westminster College on May 14: Austin Shaw with a bachelor of arts in broadcasting and sports communication; Katherine Webb, magna cum laude with a bachelor of arts degree in early childhood and special education; Zachary Marzula with a bachelor of science degree in finance; and Zachery Zeis with a bachelor of science degree in business administration. David Kelly, Jason Alexander, Malia Duffy, Owen Martin, Calen Cummins, Shaw and Webb were also named to the Dean’s List for the spring 2022 semester.

Brett Scheib has been named to the Dean’s List at the University of Mount Union for the Spring 2022 semester.

Shannon Howley graduated from Troy University. She was also named to the Chancellor’s List for the spring 2022 semester.

Jakob Hughes, a 2018 graduate of Pine-Richland High School, graduated magna cum laude from Robert Morris University on May 7 with a bachelor’s degree in cyber security and digital forensics. He is a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity and was a member of the RMU club golf team.