Art Student Scholarships
The Sanford Brush & Palette Club awards scholarships each year to students pursuing an advanced education in the study of visual arts. Other areas of creative expression are considered.
The Marge Carney Art Scholarship is for $500 to a student graduating from Lee County High School and The Billie Elmore Art Scholarship is for $500 to a student graduating from Southern Lee High School. Each scholarship is a one-time benefit towards the first year of tuition expense. The entry deadline is April 1 every year.
Art Scholarship Requirements
- Student must have taken a visual arts class during their junior or senior year
- Student must currently be a senior
- Student must have been accepted into a college or university (4-year or community)
A student is selected for the scholarship by faculty in each school’s respective visual arts program. In addition to the pursuit of advanced studies in the visual arts, the proposed scholarship recipient must have taken visual arts classes offered at the school; consistently demonstrated outstanding talent and promise in the field of visual arts; shown to be innovative in thought; and persistently engaged in the development of his/her craft and personal voice.
About Marge Carney
Marge Carney always wanted to be an artist. Her mother and grandmother were artists and she was exposed to their creative pursuits. She attended Seton Hill College near Pittsburgh where she received a BA in Art Education. She taught art to junior high school students before concentrating on family life.
One of her favorite subjects to paint was the mountains since she was born and grew up near them. She also liked to do portraits. Marge called her work impressionistic and herself a “colorist.” She painted in both oils and watercolors.
Marge joined the Sanford Brush & Palette Club in the mid-70’s and remained an active member until 2000. She served as Art Show Chair in 1990 and as President in 1991 and 1992. Marge was voted Artist of the Year in 1983 and has received numerous awards for her art.
About Billie Elmore
Billie Elmore began painting when she was living in Germany after World War II. A young Army bride, living abroad, she enrolled in a class offered by the Army Special Services program for military families. She completed two paintings. The one of the famous Swiss Matterhorn received an honorable mention in the European Theater Special Services Competition.
Favoring seascapes, landscape, still lifes and florals, Billie attended many art classes and workshops. She enjoyed painting in oils, watercolors and with mixed media.
Billie was a member of the Sanford Brush & Palette Club from 1985 until her passing in 1999. She served as Workshop Committee Chair for many years and as President in 1988, 1989 and 1994. Billie was voted Artist of the Year in 1996 and had exhibited at many an Annual Art Show and throughout the country receiving numerous honors for her work.
Previous Scholarship Recipients
Congratulations to the 2023 Art Scholarship Recipients!
Elayna (Layney) Keesee, Southern Lee HS
Layney receives the Billie Elmore Art Scholarship, and will attend NCSU to major in Film. She loves to paint and create ceramics, and has been taking art classes for three years.
Benedita Elexia Soto, Lee County HS
Benedita receives the Marge Carney Art Scholarship, and will attend CCCC to study medical administration and art. She enjoys watercolor, acrylics, pastels, and has taken art classes for four years.
The Marge Carney Art Scholarship was awarded to Laura Hedrick, graduate of Lee County High School.
My name is Laura Frances Hedrick. I have always been into the arts whether dealing with music or painting. I have been taking art classes with Mrs. Lisa since I was little and continued it throughout high school. I have found it to be a peaceful hobby that helps me clear my head. However, I consider art as more of a hobby which is why I am going to NC State’s School of Design for architecture so I can combine my creative skills with my practical skills. I want to help plan and create structures that improve the community and the environment.
The Marge Carney Art Scholarship was awarded to Alexis Lloyd, graduate of Lee County High School.
When I was a child, I was quiet and kept to myself — this was because I was deemed the weird kid. The times I did smile and have true fun was when art was involved. And this journey all started when I was making arts and crafts with my Dad. He is my first art teacher and the best I’ve ever had. I wouldn’t be where I am now without him starting me off on this path and my Mom being there with the most support anyone could give.
Now I aspire to go out into the world and make a series and just content that connects people from different backgrounds. This is so anyone can be happy with art, anyone can be part of something, no one is weird, we are all similar, connected, no longer isolated or alone.
Today, I am now a graduate at Lee Senior High School, a freshman at East Carolina University, and the proud owner of a starting brand “AphyllianArts”. I have a YouTube channel being started up and accounts with Instagram and Patreon. I plan to create content through these platforms and make myself a name, to go from there.
The Billie Elmore Art Scholarship was awarded to Carleigh Flynn, graduate of Southern Lee High School.
My full name is Carleigh Teigan Flynn, and I’ve been drawing ever since I was like two years old (I’m almost eighteen). I was the first student from Lee County Schools to represent at the North Carolina Governor’s School in the Visual Arts category. I plan on specializing in Illustration while getting a BFA at East Carolina University, where I was accepted into the Art and Design Living Learning Community, which is housed in the Garrett Dorm, right next to the fine arts center. Most of my art is representational, and I really enjoy including humans and portraits. My favorite mediums are watercolor and pencil/ink. When I get out of college, I plan on illustrating children’s books, although teaching art or owning my own studio and hosting classes would be other career choices.
The Billie Elmore Art Scholarship was awarded to Jingshi “Joyce” Liang, graduate of Southern Lee High School.
Jingshi Liang, born in 1997 in China, is a self-taught artist who is still experiencing her own style, which has been changed significantly when she stopped watching anime. Jingshi is known as a “slow worker” among her artist friends. She used to spend more than a week working
on a pair of earrings in the piece “Hanfu.” Jingshi’s work received several awards in Lee County Art Show. She graduated from Southern Lee High School in 2017, and is accepted by Maryland Institute College of Art. Featured artwork is “The Girl in Hanfu.”
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