Marosvásárhely, Romania – On September 5, 2020 the “Hungarian American Coalition Award” was presented to three students at the graduation ceremony of the Bolyai Farkas High School in Marosvásárhely, which was postponed to the fall this year due to the pandemic. Totaling $2,000, the awards were presented to seniors Etele Jakab, Gáspár Incze and sophomore Botond Szilágyi, who were recognized for their outstanding academic achievement and community service.

The first prize for academic achievement, $1,000 was awarded to senior Etele Jakab, and sophomore Botond Szilágyi was rewarded with $500 as the second prize. Etele’s and Botond’s main areas of interests are the exact sciences and computer science and they both represented the school in such competitions with outstanding results. While Etele is also an excellent athlete who successfully represented the school in athletics and pentathlon competitions and wishes to continue his studies at Babeş-Bolyai University’s Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, Botond is part of a three-member student team at the school which is developing a smart helmet that could aid the visually impaired.

Finally, senior Gáspár Incze was awarded $500 for his outstanding community service. Gáspár was Vice President and Board member of the school’s Student Association, worked as a volunteer tour guide at the Teleki Castle in Gernyeszeg and at the Museum of Marosvásárhely, he was a member of the group of students who represented the school at the Meeting of Bolyai Schools in the Carpathian Basin and he was interviewed several times by the local Hungarian daily newspaper or the Hungarian radio in Marosvásárhely, in connection with the life and problems of the students. Gáspár wishes to continue his studies at Babeş-Bolyai University’s Faculty of Economics and Business Administration and do a gap year with volunteer work in the future.

Due to COVID-19, Coalition President Andrea Lauer Rice was unable to attend the ceremony in person to present the recognitions, but her message was delivered Márta Máthé, physics teacher of the school and member of the award committee. Andrea said: “Congratulations to our wonderful Coalition Award recipients and to your families! This past year has certainly taught us some important lessons: the importance of connection, to stay flexible, creative and innovative. We also learned that it is not human nature to simply sit back and survive something. Successful leaders and the thinkers, they step into the storm and take charge of it. Your excellent academic record, the drive you have shown to succeed, and even the experiences like this past year, will serve you well as you go onto shape your own future. Please know, the Hungarian American Coalition will be cheering you on every step of the way”.

The “Hungarian American Coalition Award” at the Bolyai High School was established last year which was made possible by a grant from the Cultural Foundation for Transylvania (CFT). In the summer of 2017, the Coalition signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with CFT, whereby the Coalition agreed to implement cultural projects in Transylvania in accordance with decisions made by the Board of Directors of both organizations. The Coalition has begun disbursing grants for cultural and educational purposes that year, and decided to establish the Bolyai award in 2019, which builds upon this historic high school’s outstanding educational legacy.