"My hands-on experience at MCLA prepared me for my career at ESPN Radio. My experience at WJJW, MCLA TV, and The Beacon was what made me attractive to my prospective employers. If you want a chance to host a radio or TV show, broadcast a game, or work on an award-winning weekly newspaper; MCLA has opportunities waiting for you."
Shaun Wyman ’01 Producer, ESPN Radio
News & Press Releases
Oct. 20, 2008
NORTH ADAMS, MASS – Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) student Marvin Thompson ’10 of Springfield recently was named as the recipient of the Mitchell L. West Opportunity Scholarship for 2008-09.
A transfer student to MCLA in fall 2007 from Southeastern University in Lakeland, Fla., Thompson attended Pioneer Valley Christian High School in Springfield.
MCLA President Mary K. Grant said, “Marvin is a man on the move. In his short time here he’s touched a lot of lives across the campus. He truly is deserving of this scholarship and we know he’ll do great things.”
A junior at MCLA, Thompson is a business administration major with a concentration in sports management and a minor in economics. He will start his second year with MCLA’s basketball team this semester, and hopes to become a sports agent one day.
According to Wendy Guerra, individual enrichment program coordinator at MCLA, through his actions, Thompson has demonstrated a desire to help others pursue a similar pathway.
“A serious student and athlete, Marvin uses his success in college academics and sports as a way to connect to youth in his hometown of Springfield—to get a good message out about college and to convince them that anything is possible through hard work,” Guerra said.
A first-generation college student, Thompson plans to attend graduate school. He said he is motivated to succeed so he might set a good example to the younger children in his extended family. Thompson encourages younger students not only to stay in high school, but also to aim higher.
He has worked with a boys’ and girls’ club in Florida; with local schools as part of athletes’ service learning/educational outreach; and, most recently, he assisted with MCLA’s first basketball camp last summer.
“I want to maximize my potential in order to help others maximize theirs,” Thompson said.
The Mitchell L. West Opportunity Scholarship is awarded each year to a sophomore or junior in good academic standing who has made a positive contribution to MCLA and/or the community. During his 17 years at MCLA, the late Mitchell West worked tirelessly to help disadvantaged students gain access to higher education, according to Guerra.
West was the first Individual Enrichment Program Outreach Counselor in Admissions; he later served as Coordinator of AHANA (now called ALANA). Applicants to the scholarship must submit an essay describing their “commitment to promoting higher education as a pathway to success” and their “intention to pursue an advanced degree.”
