Stephanie Mercandetti Scholarship Winners Announced

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Four 2020 graduates from Framingham and Medway earned scholarships named for former Planning Board member Stephanie Mercandetti — one more scholarships than organizers planned to give out this year.

This was the first year that students could apply for the Mercandetti scholarship. She died of cancer in January 2018 at age 42, and a scholarship fund was set up to honor her work shortly after her death.

The four winners were all so strong, organizers decided to make room for one additional $500 scholarship.

“Committee members could see from the essays that four of the applicants’ values, dedication and drive were closely aligned with Stephanie’s," scholarship committee chair Bob Berman said in a news release. "Additional donations were made so that each of those four applicants could be awarded a scholarship."

The scholarship contest was open to students from Framingham High School, Keefe Tech, and Medway High School. Mercandetti served on the Framingham Planning Board, but also worked as the economic development director for Medway.

The 2020 scholarships winners are:

• Kaitlyn Calnan, Medway High School
• Mira Donaldson, Framingham High School
• Jack Landsiedel, Framingham High School
• Sam McKeown, Medway High School