When Bayonne High School alumnus and electrician, William Gawor, died on October 12, 2016 in his home in Rahway at age 97, he left $2 million in a handwritten will to establish a college scholarship fund for Bayonne High School students pursuing a career in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and math).
The board first heard of Gawor’s gift at a meeting in January 2017. Now, the fund called “The William Gawor Perpetual Scholarship Fund,” is officially established in a resolution unanimously approved by the Bayonne Board of Education at a meeting on September 27.
Arsh Banerjee, who was attending his first BBOED meeting as a representative of the Bayonne High School Student Council, was excited about the news. He could be in line to benefit, too, because he’s decided he will study computer science in college.
“Having the opportunity to apply for such a scholarship would be really beneficial to students who are committed to research and engineering at our school,” said Banerjee, who competes in robotics competitions throughout the region. “We have a lot of students doing very important work and research. Students will benefit from this.”
“It’s great news. This is something you could look forward to as a student,” said Trustee Mikel Lawandy, who graduated from NJIT in 2006 after studying engineering. “You work hard toward your studies to get that scholarship. It’s motivating.”
“This is quite an honor,” said Trustee Dennis Wilbeck. “It’s exciting, especially considering it will keep going for a couple of decades.”
“You work hard toward your studies to get that scholarship. It’s motivating.” – Mikel Lawandy
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STEM legacy
Gawor graduated from Bayonne High School in the late 1930s before serving in the army in World War II and attending the U.S. Military Academy. He then worked for more than 30 years as an electrician for Westinghouse Electric Co. in Newark as a member of the International Brotherhood for Electrical Workers. In the 1960s, he moved to Rahway and later became Director of Civil Works for the Army Corps of Engineers and completed a master’s degree in business administration from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
He received the Civil Management Award for Management Excellence from the American Society of Engineers in 1996, and the Presidential “Hammer Award” in 1995, which is awarded by former Vice President Al Gore to federal employees who have made significant contributions to bettering government.
Students graduating in 2019 will be eligible for the Gawor scholarship.
Rory Pasquariello can be reached at roryp@hudsonreporter.com.
