Perrin Lieberman, of Annandale, Va., is the first graduate student in the National Capital Region to be awarded an academic scholarship by the National Capital Region Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association. She accepted the $1,000 scholarship at a recent awards ceremony.

A full-time student who expects to graduate in May 2011, Lieberman is pursuing a Master of Arts in Education, with a concentration in counselor education, in the School of Education at the Northern Virginia Center. Virginia Tech's counselor education program is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).

For more than a decade, the National Capital Region Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association has awarded merit-based scholarships to graduating seniors from high schools in the counties of Fairfax and Arlington, Va., Prince George's and Montgomery, Md; the cities of Fairfax, Falls Church, and Alexandria, Va.; and in Washington, D.C., who plan to attend Virginia Tech. This is the first time that the National Capital Region chapter has awarded such a scholarship to a student in the Graduate School in the National Capital Region. "The chapter decided to extend its scholarship program to include a graduate student in the National Capital Region in an effort to expand upon the success we have enjoyed thus far with the undergraduate scholarship program," said Keith Stemple, chair of the scholarship committee.

"In awarding any of our scholarships we look for students with a well-rounded background.  Perrin has an impressive blending of academic and work experience. Her internships while attending Virginia Tech and her involvement in professional associations also helped her to stand out as a scholarship candidate," Stemple said. "We are confident that Perrin will be successful in her future endeavors and are very pleased to grant her the first award to an National Capital Region graduate student."

Lieberman earned an undergraduate degree in sociology and media studies from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va. She taught at the Tuckaway Child Development and Early Education Center in Richmond before moving to the Washington, D.C.-area in 2006. In the public policy office of Girl Scouts USA, Lieberman helped advocate for after school programs and other youth-driven legislation. 

As communications coordinator for the National Recycling Coalition, she managed and supported recycling campaigns, wrote press releases and newsletters, and managed content for the organization's website. In 2009, she served as a long-term substitute teacher at an alternative high school in Fairfax County Public Schools. She has continued to substitute, primarily in elementary and middle schools, while attending Virginia Tech. Most recently, she interned as a school counselor at J.E.B. Stuart High School in Falls Church, Va.

Lieberman is a member of the American School Counselor Association, the Virginia Counselors Association, the Virginia School Counselors Association, and the Restorative Justice Association. Additionally, her academic achievements have earned her membership into Chi Sigma Iota, the international counseling academic and professional honor society.

Later this month, Lieberman will begin a year-long supervised internship as a school counseling intern at Glasgow Middle School in Fairfax County Public Schools, a Recognized ASCA Model Program. "I am really looking forward to working in my chosen field of school counseling," said Lieberman. "As a school counselor, I will strive to promote social justice issues and be the best advocate possible for my students."

 

 

Related Links

Contact:

Tags

Share this story