Scholarships

This scholarship honors two long-term residents of Morris Township who believed in education and equal opportunity for all. The scholarship will be awarded annually to 1 – 3 Morristown High School seniors who intend to continue their education at a New Jersey public college with a goal towards a career in STEM, business, education or medicine. Successful candidates will demonstrate financial need, scholastic achievement, and a willingness to help others in the community. This scholarship is made possible by their MHS alumni children who have pledged $1 million to provide for the college education of 10 or more Morristown High School students so they can graduate with minimal or no debt.

This scholarship was established to celebrate Mr. Starrett’s legacy as an elder statesman of Morristown who helped preserve much of Morristown’s history and its heart, the Morristown Green. Mr. Starrett had the good fortune of receiving scholarships to both Princeton and NYU Law School and wished to have the same impact on Morristown High School seniors, giving them the opportunity to pursue their passions. Mr. Starrett was a respected partner at Schenck Price Smith and King who was described as “a perfect gentleman, a man of wit and wisdom, a man who always had the right aphorism to fit the occasion, who always had a hand to help a new colleague or a worthy cause.”

Robert Wong, MHS Class of 1967, established this scholarship in memory of his parents. This generous award is for $7,500 per year for up to four years. This is a merit-based scholarship for a student at the top of the Morristown High School graduating class. The senior must exemplify the traits of high academic achievement and pursuits.

The generous donations of friends and family of Mr. Stephen B. Wiley support this scholarship in recognition of his leadership and tireless efforts to forge a strong and vibrant school system and significantly strengthen the community. $12,000 ($6,000 for each of the first two years of post-secondary education) is awarded to a student from MHS who shows strong community-minded leadership both within and outside of school.

The Kerry and Kyle Wimley Scholarship was established in December 2024. The Wimley family values higher education, stemming from their parents prioritizing paying for college for each of their children and the next generation doing the same for their children. This scholarship rewards a Morristown High School senior who is a hard worker. The recipient will have strong academic achievement and a long-standing commitment to their sport. It will be awarded to a Morristown High School senior planning to attend a 2-year or 4-year college/university or a trade school/apprenticeship program who has not signed to play a sport in college. It is a one-time $10,000 award.

The McNally Family established the Capt. Brian J. McNally USMC Scholarship to honor the life of Morristown High School Alumni Capt. Brian J. McNally, USMC, an American patriot, who exemplified a life dedicated to volunteerism and service to his schools, community, state and country. The scholarship will be open to all students who are pursuing Criminal Justice, Law & Protection, Health Care, Nursing & Medical Management or Emergency Management/ Public Safety at a four-year college who demonstrate a dedication to community service. The scholarship must be used to pay tuition at an accredited 4-year college or university.

The Leonard P. Pergentile Scholarship was established in January 2025. Honoring the life and kindness of Leonard (Lenny) P. Pergentile, a 1992 Morristown High School graduate who passed away suddenly in 2023 from complications of diabetes, this scholarship is available to graduating seniors who have faced bullying or have helped to prevent bullying, have managed long-term medical challenges or who have a passion for their Morristown roots and community. It is a one-time $5,000 award. The scholarship must be used to pay tuition at a 2-year or 4-year college or university or an accredited trade/apprenticeship program.

The scholarship will be open to all Morristown High School students who are pursuing STEM fields in college studies. Preference will be given to students underrepresented in STEM careers (i.e., women, underrepresented minorities and students with special needs). George and Michele Becker are longtime Morristown residents who are committed to education and our area schools. Professionals with careers in healthcare, finance, and management, they understand the importance of science, technology, engineering and math for one’s career path.

This scholarship, created through a bequest from the estate of Dorothy F. Johnson, a 1947 MHS graduate and community leader, will be awarded to a graduating senior for two years in the amount of $1,750 per student per year. The selected student must be taking business administration-related courses at Morristown High School and intending to pursue business administration in college.

The MEF established this scholarship through the sale of the book “Youth’s Bright Years: An American High School,” written by alumnus John T. Cunningham, class of ’32. This is for an MHS graduating senior pursuing a major in the broad field of communications at a four-year college, meeting the criteria of grade point average, related extra-curricular activities, teacher recommendations, and excellent writing skills.

The Feldman Family Scholarship was established in January 2024 by long-term Morris Township residents, David (MHS '76) and Amy Feldman, and awarded in honor of the Feldman family, an alumni family with six Morristown High School graduates spanning several generations. The scholarship will be awarded to a student who has shown scholastic achievement and peer leadership, demonstrates financial need, and is the first generation in their family to attend college or university.

Sponsored by the Golden Bagel Runners, this scholarship is in memory of Javier Avelar, a beloved Morristown High School graduate, who died after an 18-month battle with colon cancer. A minimum of $2,500 will be awarded annually to one or more Morristown High School seniors, who are first-generation immigrants with financial need.

Mary Bentzlin established the Mary Bentzlin Scholarship to encourage young people to pursue public service. Mary Plunkett Bentzlin was a beloved teacher in the Morris School District for over 30 years. She was responsible for developing the Gifted and Talented Program at the elementary school level and served on numerous district committees. Most of her career was spent at Frelinghuysen Middle School where she introduced Etymology and Expository writing and directed many unforgettable plays and musicals. Her imaginative, ingenious, and exceptional approach to education inspired thousands of students who revere her and consider her to be the best teacher they ever had. Mrs. Bentzlin has been a resident of Morristown for over 70 years where she and her husband, Bertil V. Bentzlin, raised their 6 children, all of whom attended Morristown High School. In addition to her active professional life as an educator, she has been extremely active in civic endeavors and organizations including the Church of Christ the King, the Morris County Retired Educators Association, the Women’s Club of Morristown, and the former Morristown Children’s Museum. Mrs. Bentzlin is committed to a life of learning and is highly informed about Shakespeare, politics, history, religion and culture, often giving extensive lectures on these subjects. Financial need is a primary consideration for this scholarship. The scholarship must be used to pay tuition and related expenses at an accredited 2 or 4-year college or university.

The Ferrara-Myers Grandparent Scholarship was established in May, 2021 by Kris and Tom Ferrara in memory of Robert and Connie Ferrara and in honor of Jane and Mike Myers, collectively the proud parents and grandparents of 10 Morristown High School graduates. This scholarship recognizes their lifelong support of educational and community-focused causes.

The Fraternal Order of Eagles Morristown Airee 1311 Community Service Scholarship was established in March 2024.  The Fraternal Order of Eagles is an international non-profit organization uniting fraternally in the spirit of liberty, truth, justice, and equality, to make human life more desirable by lessening its ills and promoting peace, prosperity, gladness, and hope. This Scholarship is available to graduating seniors who have shown exceptional aptitude, effort and enthusiasm for community service during their high school tenure.

In memory of Fred Sporer, the Sporer Family has established the Fred Sporer Scholarship to honor the life of a man dedicated to his family, friends and community and who cared deeply about lifelong learning. This scholarship is created in the hope of helping a Morristown High School student, who wants to further their education, but does not have the financial resources to do so. Fred left this earth too early, but left an impression on all who knew him. Possessing a brilliant mind that could discuss world history, economics and world religions, he was also down to earth enough to discuss pop culture, country music and home repairs. He grew up around the world and often attributed these experiences with his ability to understand the importance of walking in another person’s shoes.

In 1969, a group of concerned citizens, known as the Morris 8, brought an action against the NJ School Board to block the attempts of the Morris Township schools to pull out of the Morristown school system. The Commissioner of Education ruled that he did not have the authority to block the separation, so the matter proceeded to the NJ Supreme Court. In what is now one of the foremost decisions in the United States on school desegregation (Jenkins v. Township of Morris School District and Bd of Ed, 58 NJ 483), the NJ Supreme Court in 1971 ruled in favor of the citizens and directed that the school systems be merged. The Morris 8 were Beatrice Jenkins, Cliff Burton, Charles C. “Moose” Jamison, Jr., Theodore King, Valerie Kowalski, Lloyd Newberry, Inge Nierenberg, and Ernestine Ritchie. Seven of them had children in the school system at that time. The Morristown High School Class of 1979 is creating a scholarship dedicated to the Morris 8 legacy. The Morris 8 Scholarship in the amount of $1,979.00 will be awarded annually to the senior class student who best demonstrates a commitment to democracy and diversity, equal opportunity and ethnic strengths, and freedom and fraternity. The student must be planning to attend college or trade school.

The Galbraith family created this scholarship in memory of former Morristown High School biology teacher and Principal, James B. Galbraith, Jr. This award will be presented to an MHS Senior with plans to major in biology at a four-year college or university. Applicants must demonstrate creativity, kindness, and an ability to work within a team, attributes the scholarship’s namesake valued and possessed.

The Morristown Distinguished Wrestler Scholarship is awarded to a senior wrestler planning to pursue post-secondary education at an accredited college or trade school. The scholarship will reward the success a student has had balancing the academic demands of school, the physical demands of wrestling and finding time for school and community involvement. Funding for this scholarship comes from MHS wrestling alumni, the Motown Grapplers Youth Wrestling Club, the MHS Wrestling Boosters and other friends of Morristown wrestling.

The Morristown High School Class of 2020 Resilience Scholarship is awarded to a senior planning to attend an accredited college or trade school for post-secondary education. The scholarship winner is nominated by a MHS teacher or guidance counselor who has shown resilience and perseverance in the face of hardship while balancing the academic demands of school. It honors the MHS Class of 2020, which demonstrated these characteristics during the COVID-19 pandemic. This scholarship is sponsored by the Project Graduation committee. The MHS Class of 2020 was unable to celebrate together on graduation night at Project Graduation. This scholarship was created to remember and commend this sacrifice and all others made by the 460 graduating seniors that year.

This Scholarship was established to honor the career of Bruce Chamberlain as a teacher and adviser at Frelinghuysen Middle School and Morristown High School. Bruce started in Morristown in 2004 as an 8th grade math teacher via the NJ alternate route program after a 25-year career in business/IT starting with Hewlett-Packard in the late seventies. In 2010, Bruce began to teach the newly formed accelerated math program at FMS along with the Quest Gifted & Talented program. Running activities such as Model UN & Mock Trial in the Quest program for many years led Bruce to reinstitute a Mock Trial team at MHS which had been dormant for many years. Mr. Chamberlain went above and beyond in all that he did and inspired everyone he came in contact with. He is beloved by his students, many of whom give him credit for their current success. Mr. Chamberlain retired in 2020 and this scholarship was created by the families of student he positively impacted as an educator and mentor. It is open to those planning to major in a STEM field, Education or Political Science.

The Douenias Family Scholarship for Scholar Athletes is awarded to a Morristown High School senior planning to attend a 4-year college or university. The scholarship will reward a student with a combined high academic achievement and a long-standing commitment to their sport. Preference will be given to students living in the town of Morristown.

Hess-Mulcahy Scholarship is awarded to a Morristown High School senior planning to attend an accredited college for post-secondary education. The scholarship will reward a student pursuing a degree in the arts (preferably in writing) or a degree in STEM. Funding for this scholarship is provided by two Morristown High School graduates. Molly Hess, ’08 and Liam Mulcahy, ’07 met and began dating at MHS, and after living in Dallas, New York City and San Francisco, they have come home to Morristown and wanted to give back to the school that gave them so much. Professionals with careers in marketing and technology, they understand the importance of opportunities within the fields of science, technology, engineering, math and writing.

Mother Estelle Walker Hinkins graduated from Morristown High School (MHS) in 1897, the first African American woman to do so. She graduated with honors and went on to attend Wilberforce University in Wilberforce, Ohio where she earned a degree in education. After being denied an opportunity to teach in Morris County, she taught in the Atlantic City School District, but remained committed to the youth of Morristown, and along with Mrs. Early, started the Phyllis Wheatley Women’s Club on Spring Street in Morristown. One of the club’s main focuses was teaching children how to read. Today, Estelle Hinkins is fondly remembered by her former students as “strict”. They were probably unaware that Miss Estelle, as she was called, was the granddaughter of former slaves in Morris County and desired the best education for her students so that they would never allow that history to repeat itself. Estelle Walker Hinkins was a member of Bethel Church of Morristown. The church honors the memory of Estelle Walker Hinkins and her work with this scholarship which will award $1,000 each to two Morristown High School seniors (1 male, 1 female) of African American or African descent pursuing a 2-year or 4-year degree in education with a career path towards early childhood, elementary, secondary, and/or post-secondary education. Funding for this scholarship is provided by the Bethel Church Community.

The Morristown Animal Hospital Animal Welfare Scholarship is awarded to a graduating Morristown High School Senior in the amount of $1,000. The Morristown Animal Hospital has been caring for animals in Morristown and neighboring communities since 1915. David Matalon, VMD has been the owner and chief veterinarian since 2005. David lives and works in Morristown and his children have been educated in the Morris School District. David believes in giving back to the community and established this scholarship to encourage and support a graduating senior from Morristown High School in pursuing a career in animal welfare.

The Shaffer Family established this scholarship in memory of Coach Shaffer to encourage young athletes (both male and female) to pursue a larger purpose for their future and to ensure commitment to the community where they live and work. Coach Shaffer was a beloved teacher and coach at Morristown High School, as well as a teacher and vice-principal at Frelinghuysen Middle School. Coach Shaffer and many of his fellow coaches made a commitment to Morristown High School to mentor young athletes into a role of responsibility and education. This scholarship is open to all students who participate in a sport at Morristown High School and have plans to attend a four-year college, two-year college, trade school, or culinary school. Preference is given to those with demonstrated financial need.

The Shirley Shalit Scholarship was established to honor lifelong Morristown resident and Morristown High School alumna, Shirley Domb Shalit (Class of ’39). The scholarship will be open to all students who are pursuing a major in the Humanities with a preference for English Literature at a two or four-year college. The scholarship must be used to pay tuition at an accredited 2-year or 4-year college or university.