Local Student Receives Fisheries and Aquaculture Scholarship

SANDY HOOK — The New Jersey Marine Sci-ences Consortium/New Jersey Sea Grant (NJMSC/NJSG) awarded its Stew Tweed Fisheries and Aquaculture Scholar-ships this past weekend at a special ceremony during Ocean Fun Days, a two-day education and outreach event co-hosted by New Jersey Natural Gas and NJMSC/NJSG and held at Island Beach State Park and Sandy Hook.
The scholarships were established in 2008 in memory of Stew Tweed, a 27-year veteran of the New Jersey Sea Grant Marine Extension Serv-ice, who passed away in early 2007. This year the awards were presented by Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6th District), Tweed’s long-time friend and colleague who served as a Coastal Law Specialist for the New Jersey Sea Grant Extension Program in the late 1970s.
“Stew had a great ap-preciation and respect for the environment,” Pallone said, recalling his experi-ences working with Tweed during their early careers. “He would have loved to be here today. These students represent everything he stood for.”
The scholarship pro-gram, now in its third year, annually awards $1,000 to a graduating high school senior and $1,500 to an under-graduate or graduate stu-dent pursuing studies or a career in fisheries or aquaculture.
The 2010 recipients were Nicholas Lanza, a graduating senior from Cape May Technical High School (CMTHS) who will enter Richard Stockton College in the fall and Alexa Kretsch of Eaton-town, a rising junior at the University of Rhode Island and a graduate of the Marine Academy of Science and Technology on Sandy Hook.
Lanza, who was unable to attend the ceremony, was represented by Hans Toft, his Natural Science teacher at CMTH. Stew’s wife Gail and several family members were on hand for the presentation as well. In addition to a special plaque and the scholarship check, each recipient was presented with a special letter of congratulations from New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas Fisher who has presented the scholarship awards in the past.
NJMSC/NJSG Director of Communications Kim Kosko, who was instrumental in establishing the scholarships noted, “The scholarships were intended to perpetuate Stew’s legacy. We hope today’s scholarship winners will choose to follow in Stew’s footsteps.” Students, parents and teachers interested in learning more about the scholarship should visit a special web site set up by NJMSC/NJSG at StewTweed.org.
The New Jersey Marine Sciences Consor-tium/New Jersey Sea Grant is an affiliation of colleges, universities and other groups dedicated to advancing knowledge and stewardship of New Jersey’s marine and coastal environment.
NJMSC/NJSG meets its mission through its in-novative research, educa-tion and outreach pro-grams. For more informa-tion about NJMSC/NJSG, visit njmsc.org.