O'Reilly Scholarship

Established by Ann O’Reilly Donavin ’42, the O’Reilly Scholarship recognizes a first-time, incoming freshman student who is committed to environmental issues and plans to enroll in environmental science and ecology.

Mrs. Donavin, a native of Brockport, attended the Normal School, noting that growing up she always thought of the Normal School as a place of entertainment with basketball games, musicals, and Color Day. She recalled that Color Day involved participation by children from all three Brockport grade schools: the Campus School, the Brockport Grammar School, and the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary School.

She taught following her graduation from Brockport and enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps from 1948 to 1950. After active duty, she continued with the Army Reserve for 24 years, retiring with the rank of major. After her active-duty service, she earned her master’s degree in education from the University at Buffalo, and worked for the Buffalo Veterans Administration Hospital as an occupational therapist.

She was a past member of the Advisory Board of the Maryvale School District, and a past officer in the local and national chapters of the American Association of Rehabilitation Therapists as well as a volunteer with the Girls Scouts and the American Red Cross.

Applicants for the O’Reilly Scholarship should be entering, first-time freshman students who are majoring in Environmental Science and Ecology, and who demonstrate concern for the environment. They must demonstrate the ability to complete requirements for the degree, and submit a paragraph describing how they are committed to environmental issues and the study of science as it relates to those concerns.