the Foundation of the National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) has expanded its Vince DeFinis Scholarship program for undergraduate students and will award $20,000 in undergraduate scholarships to five students in summer 2011.
A total of five presentations will be made at the NACE annual convention, Experience! 2011, in Reno-Tahoe. The Foundation will award the $10,000 Vince DeFinis Scholarship grant, as well as four, $2,500 Foundation Scholarship Awards. Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA and be enrolled as a full-time student to be eligible for the scholarship. The recipient will also receive complimentary student membership in the National Association of Catering Executives.
Applicants must be currently enrolled as a full-time student (12 credits or more) in an accredited hospitality, culinary or related program. Students must have completed 60 credits to be eligible. Judging will be based on an essay and two letters of reference, which must be included in the application. All applications must be submitted by May 1, 2011. The winners will be announced at the NACE Experience! conference, July 24-27, in Reno-Tahoe.
Students who are interested in applying for the scholarship may find more information at http://www.nace.net/galleries/ education-documents/2011% 20Application.pdf. DeFinis, who died in December 2007, was one of the co-founders of NACE and a visionary in the field of catering and special events. On June 3, 1958 in New York City, DeFinis helped found the Banquet Managers Guild, which would grow to become the National Association of Catering Executives. He spent his entire career dedicated to the profession and to seeing that NACE properly reflected and served its members. The scholarship honoring DeFinis was launched in 2008.