AUGUSTA — Syntiro, a nonprofit organization located in Augusta, has established the Shelley Reed Memorial Scholarship in honor of the late Shelley Reed, a dedicated advocate for the education of all children and a longtime member of the Syntiro Board of Directors.

Reed — a former teacher, school counselor, and education specialist at the Maine Department of Education — devoted her career to addressing critical educational issues. Her passion for truancy, dropout prevention, alternative education, school counseling, homeless education, and the well-being of expelled and suspended youth was unwavering, according to a news release from Syntiro’s Kayla Hopkins.

Reed served as a liaison to the military, collaborated with the Maine Afterschool Network and Juvenile Justice Advisory Group, and played a pivotal role in the Maine Charter School movement, serving as President of the Maine Alliance of Public Charter Schools.

This annual scholarship, valued at $1,000, is designed to support a deserving youth in foster care who aspires to pursue higher education beyond high school.

The scholarship will be awarded in late May each year, on behalf of the student, to the institute of higher education where the student is enrolled in the fall immediately following high school graduation. Eligibility extends to all Maine 12th graders who have been in foster care during at least part of their senior year.

To apply, interested candidates must submit their application, essay and two letters of recommendation (from a teacher, school counselor, JMG specialist, case manager, employer, foster parent, etc.) no later than April 1 each year. The application can be found at syntiro.org.

All materials should be emailed to Syntiro at [email protected] with “Shelley Reed Scholarship Application” in the subject line.

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