NCWA is always proud to report on subsequent developments in the careers and lives of the alumni of its summer scholarship programs.

Recently, we heard from Chelsea Casabona, a scholarship winner who graduated from Florida State University and now has been accepted for a graduate degree.

"I wanted to share some good news I recently received," she wrote to Debbie Doyle, a School Outreach volunteer. "I was accepted into Columbia University for the fall of 2023 for their Documentary M.S. in Journalism program! I wanted to tell you because my love for international affairs started that summer in Vermont (when she attended the former G.I. V program in Burlington VT) and you have been such a great support system. Thank you for giving me that opportunity all those summers ago. I wouldn't be where I am without it."

Click Here to read an article written by Chelsea about her journey leading her to be the first person in her family to earn a college degree.

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Students who have won competitive NCWA summer scholarships become members of our Alumni Association upon the completion of those courses of study. Alumni members are asked to encourage other students to apply for these opportunities and often serve as advisors to these underclassmen and women.

We ask that student alumni maintain periodic contact with the NCWA so that they may fulfill this important goal. Alumni students may do so by returning the “Update Form” below when they have successfully completed an important activity or when they participate in an experience that broadened their knowledge of global issues.  

We encourage alumni who are in the Naples area to attend alumni membership meetings to share their experiences and to network as they pursue their world affairs-related college courses and careers.  

The School Outreach Committee in 2019, before the pandemic, hosted a luncheon for returning students from the 2019 summer programs. These students who had been part of the Georgetown, Vermont Governors Institute, and the overseas study programs shared their experiences and expressed their gratitude to the Council. Later, we invited the 2020 scholarship winners to lunch with alumni to describe and explain their programs and offer counsel and answer questions for those about to travel to Washington, DC or overseas. In 2021 we made available to our alumni videos of the NCWA lecture program. 

In 2022, we returned to an in-person luncheon and were proud to welcome a number of alumni and current scholarship winners.

In 2023, about 20 students -- alumni and current scholarship winners -- attended the annual luncheon.

     Chelsea Carabona, left, joins students and alumni at the recent 2023 Alumni Luncheon.

Alumnae attending the luncheon in 2022 were, from left, Catherine Stogner, past alumni president and graduate of Florida Southern College; Sarah Davenport, first president and doctoral candidate at Brown University; Sydnie Stern, who is graduating from the University of Central Florida; Lauren Crisci, current president and a sophomore at Florida State University, and Fernanda Paez, who is graduating from the University of Miami.

Alumni Roster (EXCEL) (PDF) – Attached is a list containing the names of recent alumni students along with minimal personal information about them.  (Name, high school attended, date & name of summer program attended. Persons interested in contacting any Alumni member should address their request for additional information to either: 

Linda Crescenzi (NCWA Chair)  239-566-1521  lindacres@comcast.net 

or 

President-Catherine Stogner   catstogner87@gmail.com Lehly '17 Florida Southern '21

or 

VP-Lauren Crisci   laurencrisci10@gmail.com  Florida State

Alumni Update Form (WORD) (PDF) – Alumni students can download and complete this form to let Council members know where they are now and how they are using their summer experience to help them make positive contributions to our contemporary world.  

Alumni updates (WORD) (PDF) – Read highlights from our alumni taken from the Alumni Update Form which have been featured in the NCWA Newsletter to all Council members.

Alumni presentations to the NCWA following their return from summer scholarship programs:

      February 4, 2019 (15min 36 sec): Click here to watch the video on YouTube