EAST LONGMEADOW — Thanks to the father of a late East Longmeadow High School graduate, students pursuing a career in medicine could now be awarded a scholarship of up to $30,000.
At the Nov. 18 School Committee meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Business Pamela Blair explained that she was contacted by a former area resident, William Carlisle, whose daughter was an East Longmeadow High School graduate who died of cancer at age 23.
Despite now living in Florida, Carlisle wanted to donate 2,500 shares of Apple stock, valued at $600,000, to the school. Working with Blair on how to accomplish his goals, Carlisle decided to fund the William J. Carlisle Scholarship in Memory of His Daughter Roxanne Carlisle.
“His only request is that this money go to students who are entering the medical field … as long as they have a financial need,” Blair said. She added that the school administration would decide how to distribute the funds.
“We are very excited about the opportunity that the Carlisle family has provided for our graduates,” said East Longmeadow High School Principal Frank Paige. “We are currently working with our guidance and science department members to provide structure to the scholarship and its application process. I do expect the scholarship to be broken up and distributed to multiple graduates. I would say that we should have a structure to it in the next month or so.”
The 2,500 shares will generate about $30,000 in interest each year, which will fund the scholarship. Because it will take time to set up the scholarship and transfer ownership of the stock, Carlisle also sent a $40,000 check to the school with instructions to use $30,000 of it for the 2024-25 scholarship.
School Committee member Sarah Truoiolo commented, “That’s an extraordinary gift.” The other committee members agreed, praising Carlisle’s generosity.
