Kids & Family
Framingham's Sabetha Lafontant Receives Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarship
Five Massachusetts graduates were awarded Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarships.
WCVB-TV Channel 5 announced the winners of the 16th Annual Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarship on Monday, June 9.
Among the five winners were Sabetha Lafontant from Framingham High School, who will be attending the University of Massachusetts-Boston this fall. After struggling early in the classroom, she was encouraged to enroll in a non-profit program called Resiliency for Life, which helped her succeed in school.
The Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarship Fund honors the late Perkins, a NewsCenter 5 reporter who developed Channel 5's weekly "A+" reports.
The ongoing segments profile outstanding high school seniors who often overcome incredible odds to achieve success and go on to college.
Checks were presented today at WCVB's headquarters in Needham to five students from local area high schools to assist them in furthering their education. On hand to present the checks were Bill Fine, WCVB-TV President and General Manager and Emily Rooney, Perkin's wife and former news director at WCVB-TV. Fine and Rooney were joined by the Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarship Fund committee: Candy Altman, Vice President of News, Hearst Television Inc.; James Barron, Chairman and CEO of Barron Associates Worldwide, Inc.; and David Brown, Chief Advancement Officer at the Forsyth Institute (former WCVB Anchor and Meteorologist).
2014 Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarship Fund recipients include:
- Sabetha Lafontant, Framingham High - Attending University of Massachusetts Boston
- Kyle Dance, Boston Latin Academy – Attending Bridgewater State University
- Christian Pineda, Fitchburg High – Attending Princeton
- Zhenya Pankova, Georgetown High – Attending Bridgewater State University
- Deqa Aden, Worcester Academy – Attending Grinnel College
"The stories of the A+ Scholarship fund winners are always inspiring," said Fine. "We applaud all of these students for their hard work and determination, despite challenging circumstances, propelling them to excellence in high school. The committee takes great pleasure providing college funding assistance through the Kirby Perkins A+ Scholarship Fund, as these outstanding students begin their college education."
In July of 1997, Perkins, a long-time staff member died of a heart attack at the age of 49. Perkins spent most of his distinguished career reporting on the people, places, and things that made our community tick; but his true passion always rested with the "people" part of the job -- specifically with children. Perkins was an innovator and developed a weekly news segment to honor high school students taking the right road. WCVB calls the segment "A+", and each week it recognizes a high school student of great achievement.
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