New Berrien Community Foundation Nursing Scholarship

mark-jean
mark-jean

A new scholarship is being offered by the Berrien Community Foundation to those interested in pursuing an education in nursing. The scholarship fund set up by Mark and Jean Penwell will cover two $1,500 nursing scholarships each year. They’ve named it the F.A. Mason Penwell Scholarship in honor of Mark’s mother, Frances Abbie Mason Penwell, who was an artist and teacher. Mark says she always wanted to be a nurse, but she was forced to leave school in the 1940s when the administration discovered she was married. Jean says one could not be both a nurse or teacher and married back then, adding her mother always held nurses in high regard. The Berrien Community Foundation says Lake Michigan College, with its long-accredited nursing program, is grateful for the new support for nursing students.