Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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Fayetteville Technical Community College and Scholarships by CLARETHA LACY Want to earn money to pay for your education? Scholarships are defined as "money that does not have to be repaid or free money earned because of per- formance." Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC), businesses, religious and civic organizations, employers, philanthropic associations, individuals, colleges and universities, community agencies and foundations offer free money in the forms of scholarships, stipends or grants to fund educational goals. Do you assume that scholarships are unavailable to you because you do not have a 4.0 grade- point average? This is not only a fallacy, but will stop you from researching and applying for scholarships. What is required and when is the best time to apply for scholarships? FTCC's curriculum areas of study (business programs, college transfer, general-education programs, engineering, public service, applied technology programs and health programs) offer numerous scholarships. Many of these scholarships may require no more than maintaining a "C" (2.0 GPA) or enrolling in relative programs. Yet, all educational scholarships, stipends or grants require that you take the initiative to research scholarship availability, complete the application process and meet deadlines (often beginning as early as January for consideration during the fall semester). Imagine the feeling of success (master student equals mas- ter employee) when you inform a potential employer that you financed your educa- tion through scholarships, stipends or grants. How do I find scholarships that pertain to me? The Financial Aid Office, Career Center at FTCC, College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC.org), online scholarship search engines, individual consults with colleges and universities, Google searches and sundry websites have numerous scholarships for which you may qualify. Include information that is unique to you, such as gender, ethnic background, academic achievement, demographics and major. You will be surprised by the diversity of scholarships available. Scholarship SOUNDS OF MUSIC Does Music Education Improve Academic Performance? by RICHARD ELLIS The education a child receives will set the groundwork for future success. There is a strong connection between edu- cational achievement and music education. Data from the College Board, Profile of College-Bound Seniors National Report for 2001, revealed that for every year a student par- ticipated in music instruction, their SAT scores improved significantly. Students with four or more years of music study received an average score of about 544 as opposed to a score just above 482 for those with at least one semester of music instruction, thus showing a strong correlation between music lessons and academic success. Grade-school music students also show increased learning in math and reading. The Public Schools of Albuquerque, N.M., conducted a study that found that instrumental-music students with two or more years of study scored significantly higher in the California Test of Basic Skills than did non- music students. High school students also achieve greater academic excel- For example, the students in the marching band, the glee club, choir or any other performing ensembles have an enhanced feeling of satisfaction and pride in their school. Having pride gives the students a reason to stay in school. Lamb has found that, especially in public schools, the lead- ers and the academic achievers were almost always involved in performing-arts programs. Lamb further noted that even the top-tier engineering and science universities have musical ensembles composed of students who had a background that included music lessons. Just 15 minutes a week of private keyboard instruction, along with group singing at pre-school, dramatically im- proved a kind of intelligence needed for high-level math and science, suggests a new study. Music lessons appear to strengthen the links between lence when exposed to music training. A study by Mission Veijo High School in Southern California (1981) shows that the overall grade point average of music students is consistently higher than the grade point average of their non-music peers. The music students achieved a 3.59 average while the non-music students achieved a lower 2.91 average. Dr. Earnest Lamb is the chair of the Department of Performing and Fine Arts at There is a strong connection between educational achievement and music education. brain neurons and build new spatial reasoning, says Psychologist Frances Rauscher of University of California- Irvine. "Music instruction can improve a child's spatial in- telligence for long periods of time — perhaps permanently," Rauscher told the American Psychological Association meeting according to the study in 1997. Her study compared 19 preschoolers who took the lessons and 14 classmates Fayetteville State University. Prior to accepting the position at Fayetteville State, Dr. Lamb taught orchestra in the public schools of Little Rock, Ark. He later joined the faculty at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff before coming chair of its music department. Lamb found that music education encouraged students to stay in school because it improves their self-esteem, and those music educational activities give students a sense of belonging. 16 UCW FEB. 29 - MARCH 6, 2012 enrolled in no special music programs. After eight months, she found: • A 46 percent boost in spatial IQs for the young musicians • A 6 percent improvement for children not taught music "If parents can't afford lessons, they should at least buy a musical keyboard ... or sing regularly with their kids and involve them in mu- sical activities," Rauscher said. DR. RICHARD ELLIS, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@ upandcomingweekly.com WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM categories are almost endless and are inclusive of allied-health professionals, left- handed people and dislocated workers. Scholarships are available for teaching, nursing, accounting, fashion designing as well as business majors, high school graduates and minority scholarships, first-generation college students, single parents, creative writers, wacky scholarships, working moms and/or women over 50 years of age, moms going back to college and for heads of households. Scholarship categories are almost endless. How progressive and motivated am I? Because many students are not willing to research and expend the time and effort to apply for scholarships, there are hundreds of millions of dollars in scholarship mon- ies available in the United States, and many — if not most — of these scholarships are attainable by regular students with regular accomplishments. The processes of working diligently toward academic progression, willingly conducting research, following directions when completing scholarship forms/assignments and meeting required deadlines in the pursuit of excellence are all opportunities that master students embrace. Students who go beyond what is expected to experience successful educational goals are usually students who receive awards and/or free money (scholarships) to pursue higher-educational goals. Will a scholarship enhance transferable skills and help secure employment in a global economy? Earning scholarships and other educational awards demonstrates transfer- able skills for which Fortune 500 business enterprises willingly pay megabucks. Students who receive scholarships for outstanding academic performance are the individuals who usually get the most lucrative jobs and/or enroll into bachelor and graduate degree programs. Why don't you cash in on the financial and employability re- wards of scholarships? CLARETHA LACY, FTCC Counselor, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomingweekly.com