The Elm Student Newspaper
Clarke receives prestigious St. Andrew's Society scholarship
Boothe Crumbley
Sophomore Catharine Clarke will study in
Scotland next year
Courtesy of Department of Music
Sophomore Catharine Clarke is a living testament to the fact that the Washington College music department is still alive, as well as the college's arts program in general. Clarke has become the first student in the college's history to win the prestigious St. Andrew's Society scholarship.
As a result, next year she will study music abroad in Scotland. The St.
Andrew's Society is a nationwide society that promotes Scottish arts and culture. The contest, although not specifically about music, awards and supports the study of Scottish heritage.As a native of Chestertown, and the daughter of WC music professor Garry Clarke, Catharine Clarke has a great familiarity with the WC community but also looks forward to the new experience abroad. "I'm honored and excited for this opportunity," said Clarke.
A music major with a minor in art, Clarke has taken an active role in the arts and art-related groups located on-campus. She has worked with the vocal consort, the Riverside Players, and the Royal Fakespeare Players.
On top of this, Clarke also had her own music recital in February.The process by which Clarke won the St. Andrew's Society Scholarship was complex. First, the WC music department weeded out potential prospects by having them write a short essay. The essay was about why the students felt they deserved to go to Scotland.
Clarke described it as being similar to a "resume." It was with her essay that WC decided to select Clarke as their representative.
Clarke was competing with seventeen other students from seventeen different schools. Among the other schools competing for the four scholarships the Society was handing out were Penn State, Swarthmore, and Bucknel.May 11, Clarke went to the Union League in Philadelphia for a day-long visit and interview with members of the society as well as other potential recipients of the scholarship. "I was nervous because I had no idea how qualified anyone else was or how their interviews were going," commented Clarke.
After the interview, she waited for either a phone call that would tell her she would get the scholarship or a letter several days later to inform her that she hadn't. "I had absolutely no clue," said Clarke about her chances of winning.
Needless to say, Clarke received the phone call. "I jumped about a mile," she said.
Not only had she received a scholarship, she was the first participant selected. This meant she had the opportunity to select which of the five schools in Scotland she wanted to attend. The University of St. Andrews was her first choice. The university has gained international recognition because of the enrollment of Prince William of England, as well as being one of the preeminent universities in the world.
The music department, the art department, and the Administration have all congratulated Clarke for her achievement. "We are very proud of Catharine," commented Assistant Dean Mark Hoesly. "By awarding her this prestigious scholarship to study at St. Andrew's University in Edinboro, Scotland, the selection committee of the St. Andrew's Society of Philadelphia agreed with Washington College's selection committee that Catharine is and will continue to be an outstanding representative of Washington College, of the St. Andrew's Society of Philadelphia, and of American college students."
Donald McColl, assistant professor of art history, acted as a mentor for Clarke during this process. He too had praise for his student: "I, for one, am delighted that one our students, a music major, with an art minor, was able to compete with some of the very best students in the mid-Atlantic region and win a coveted St. Andrew's Society Scholarship."
Clark said, "I hope that the administration realizes that music scholars are real scholars too."
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