Friday, Dec 16, 2022
Senior Bri Barone awarded scholarship from the Phi Theta Kappa Foundation Board of Trustees
by Keith Fernbach
Bri Barone, a senior secondary education and English major, has been awarded an Excellence in Leadership scholarship in the amount of $8,000 from the Phi Theta Kappa Foundation Board of Trustees.
This honor recognizes students who demonstrate outstanding leadership and help further the mission of Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for students in community colleges and similar two-year academic programs.
Barone, who transferred to Rider from Anne Arundel Community College in Maryland, has been active in Phi Theta Kappa since 2018. She has served in multiple leadership positions, including chapter officer, chapter president, regional president and international vice president. During this time, she helped her school’s chapter achieve five-star status (the highest level possible), worked with local chapters nationwide and played a role in launching the #CCsmart initiative, which promotes the positive attributes and benefits of community college and two-year programs.
“To have my education funded through the generosity of those who believe in me is so incredibly humbling and very much a blessing for me and my family,” she says of receiving the scholarship.
Barone transferred to Rider in 2021 to pursue her dream of becoming a teacher. She received Rider’s Transfer Trustee Scholarship, a prestigious full-tuition scholarship given to only three top students who transfer from community colleges. Being an active member of Phi Theta Kappa is one of the eligibility requirements for the scholarship.
“The College of Education and Human Services is renowned for the amazing things they do for their students and the teachers they prepare,” she says. “I knew Rider would be the best option for me.”
To have my education funded through the generosity of those who believe in me is so incredibly humbling."
From the moment she set foot on campus, she has been heavily involved in many aspects of the school community, taking on leadership roles including senator in the Student Government Association, fundraising chair of the Omicron Delta Kappa honor society, and PR chair for both the Transfer Student Association and Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honor society.
Barone also works for the University’s Office of Admissions as a transfer ambassador and tour guide. “Being a part of the college selection journey for prospective students and helping them find out what fits for them is a really special opportunity that I’ve been given,” she says.
Barone is slated to graduate from Rider this spring. She had been planning to return home and teach in the Anne Arundel County Public School District, where she was once a student, but thanks to the Excellence in Leadership scholarship, she’s now rethinking her plans. Since the scholarship will cover the cost of her continuing education, she is now applying to graduate schools to pursue her Master of Education in either gifted/creative education or curriculum design and instruction.
Barone still hopes to work as an English language arts educator in a middle school setting while she pursues her master’s. “It will be challenging, but my academic journey over these past six years has been, too. Needless to say, I am eager and up for this next challenge in life.”