The Palette & The Page creates endowed scholarship to promote the arts
Published on February 10, 2021
Patti Paulus
ELKTON, Md. – For more than a half-century, businesses like The Palette & The Page have been incredibly supportive of Cecil College’s students in the form of financial support, employment opportunities, internships, and apprenticeships. Cecil College is proud to announce a new endowed scholarship that focuses on promoting the arts within Cecil County.
The Palette & The Page Art Scholarship achieved endowment status by surpassing the $10,000 benchmark last month. This scholarship is the brainchild of Patti Paulus, Lynn Whitt, and Janet Youse, the three women who own The Palette & The Page art gallery. Located at 120 East Main Street in Elkton, Md., The Palette & The Page was established in November 2009 to feature regional artists.
Passionate about Cecil County, these women believe strongly in financially supporting students at Cecil College and offering opportunities for some students to show their work in the gallery.
“This endowment is truly a community funded scholarship as the majority of the funds were donated by community members at events held at the gallery,” said Paulus, who is also on the Cecil College Foundation Board. One such event held bi-annually is An Artful Tasting, an evening of tasting local alcoholic beverages and foods while raising funds for the scholarship. “For us, it feels like our legacy. We’re not going to be here forever … but 100 years from now, there will be that scholarship.”
The criteria to be awarded this scholarship includes Cecil County residency and enrollment in the Associate of Fine Arts program at Cecil College. The recipient’s concentration area will be in ceramics, sculpture, drawing, and/or painting. They can also be enrolled in the Associate of Arts program in ceramics or drawing and painting while maintaining a 3.0 GPA. The final criteria include a portfolio review by a minimum of two Cecil College Art Professors.
“I think it’s a good learning opportunity for them to have to put together a portfolio or to have a body of work to show somebody that says ‘This is what I’m doing and this is what I’m pursuing,’” said Paulus. “If you want to be an artist, you have to put yourself out there.”
The Palette & The Page hosts other events affiliated with Cecil College. These include the English department’s annual creative writing awards and public reading. Every April, the shop hosts creative writing and poetry reading as part of National Poetry Month.
The Palette & The Page, which is proudly a female-owned business, continues to accept donations to grow the scholarship endowment. The Palette & The Page’s specialty is to support local artists and writers who are within a 60-mile radius of the community.
“We feel the creation of a scholarship is our legacy to the community, and with it being endowed, it will endure long into the future,” said Paulus. “I am very proud of what the board is doing for young people. They have touched so many lives in Cecil County.”
To apply for this and other Cecil College scholarships, visit cecil.edu/scholarships. If you are interested in supporting a student through a tax-deductible gift, please contact the Cecil College Foundation at foundation@nullcecil.edu or visit cecil.edu/foundation.