Superintendent of Schools Michael J. Ritacco is proud to announce that 56 seniors attending High School East, High School North, and High School South have been selected as Edward J. Bloustein Distinguished Scholars.

In order to receive this honor, students must have a class rank of one, two, or three in their graduating class and rank within the top 10% of their graduating class at the end of their junior year; or have a class rank within the top 10% of their graduating class at the end of their junior year with combined critical reading and math SAT scores of 1260 or higher at the end of their junior year.

By qualifying for this award, each Distinguished Scholar will receive $1,000 annually to put towards their college tuition without regard to financial need.  

The Edward J. Bloustein Distinguished Scholars from the Toms River Regional Schools are as follows:

High School South (15):
Neal Athwal
David Calhoun
Michael Corrigan
Paul Cusmano
Michael Filandro
Michael Gerardo
Kyrie Graziosi
Patrick Leung
Robert Melloy
Ryan Meyer
Patrick Park
Dave Patel
Hallie Petersen
Christina Sarris
Maria Tecson

“The entire district congratulates these seniors for being honored as the top achieving students in their classes,” said Superintendent Ritacco.  “They have been great assets to our school district and we thank them for all they have contributed over the past years.  Being named a Bloustein Scholar is a great honor for these students and shows the level of dedication they have had to their academic work.  We are sure that they will continue this level of excellence as future leaders of their communities.”

The Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA), an independent agency of the State of New Jersey, administers the Garden State Scholarship Program, which includes the Edward J. Bloustein Distinguished Scholar and Urban Scholar awards.  For more information about HESAA’s programs, call 800-792-8670 or visit www.hesaa.org.