Mayor Menino awards City of Boston / Turner Broadcasting Scholarship

BOSTON – Mayor Thomas M. Menino presented the second City of Boston / Turner Broadcasting System Inc. Scholarship last night to Risa McKenzie, a recent graduate of The English High School in Jamaica Plain. The $2,500 prize is presented annually to a student graduating from the Boston Public Schools who plans to pursue college and career in the field of media communications.

In a ceremony at City Hall, Mayor Menino commended Ms. McKenzie for her academic record and her achievements in broadcast journalism.

“We are so pleased to present this scholarship to a young woman with an impressive high school record and a bright future ahead of her,” said Mayor Menino.

“Risa McKenzie is the ideal student to receive this prestigious award,” said Dr. Carol R. Johnson, Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools. “She has demonstrated great talent in the classroom, in the television studio, and in the community. I have no doubt we will be hearing great things about Risa in the years ahead.”

A resident of Roxbury, Ms. McKenzie plans to attend Emerson College next year, where she will major in Communications. Her career ambition is to create a production company.

“Being a lead film editor I can use my creativity and imagination,” she wrote in her application. “I want to create my own film organization that would reach out to communities so more people could learn and explore the wonders of film.”

Ms. McKenzie was the valedictorian of her class, earning a 4.63 grade point average while taking many Honors and Advanced Placement courses. Earlier this year, Ms. McKenzie received a scholarship from WCVB / Channel 5 through the station’s A+ Student program.

Ms. McKenzie has been working in broadcast journalism for nearly four years. She has served as executive producer, host and editor for English High Television (ETV). Last year, Ms. McKenzie was a member of the ETV team that won the Fox 25 “My High School Newscast” competition. Ms. McKenzie was also the assistant editor of the English High School’s newspaper and a member of the cheerleading squad and the track and field team.

She was nominated for the scholarship by Xavier Rozas, a Media Instructor at English High.

Wrote Mr. Rozas, “Risa McKenzie has distinguished herself in the Boston Public Schools system in part because of her incredible grades, communication skills, and leadership roles, but what people who know her are most impressed with is her ability to channel her own self-confidence into community empowerment and action.”

Mayor Menino created the scholarship in 2007 in partnership with the Boston Public Schools and Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. To be eligible for the prize, a graduating senior must have demonstrated academic achievement, been accepted to college, and declared a commitment to pursuing college studies in a media communications field. The winner is selected based on high school transcript, personal statement, and letters of recommendation.

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October 16, 2007: Mayor Menino announces technology program with Turner Broadcasting for Boston schools