Rhode Island College’s Portuguese Studies Program to honor outstanding students

PROVIDENCE - Rhode Island College’s Portuguese Studies Program will be inducting several outstanding students and honorary members into the Sigma Chapter of the Phi Lambda Beta Portuguese Honor Society on Wednesday, April 24.

Honorary members are selected on the basis of high service, scholarship or advocacy in the promotion of Portuguese Studies, the Portuguese language and Portuguese, Brazilian and African Lusophone cultures at Rhode Island College and in the community.

The ceremony will also serve to recognize the 2024 recipients of the John A. and Mary V. Lima Scholarship in Portuguese Studies and The Lema-Fernandes Study Abroad Scholarship.

The event will take place from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Gaige Hall 200. Admission is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.

Keynote address by Victor Santos

RIC Alumnus Victor Santos will be the keynote speaker.

After earning a degree in Communication from RIC in 1985, Santos built a distinguished career in human resources and community leadership. He was Director of Human Resources for the City of East Providence, R.I.; Vice President of Human Resources and Affirmative Action Officer at Cape Cod Community College, Mass.; Assistant General Manager of Human Resources and Affirmative Action at RIPTA, R.I.; and Past President and Co-Founder of Community Center Grupo Amigos da Terceira in Pawtucket, RI.

He is also a music composer, performer, and writer. At the ceremony, he will present his novel “Clemente e Mariana: O Sonho Americano” and his bilingual biography “Victor Santos, Alma Terceirense” by Liduíno Borba.

Who will be receiving a scholarship?

The 2024 recipients of the John A. and Mary V. Lima Scholarship are: sophomore Aliya Goulart, an Elementary Education major focusing in Special Education, who is minoring in Portuguese; sophomore Chinasa Corbie, a Global Studies major, who is minoring in Portuguese; and senior Sydney Hajder, a Radiography major, who is minoring in Portuguese.

This $2,000 scholarship is awarded annually to students who demonstrate high academic achievement and a commitment to studying Portuguese at RIC.

The 2024 recipient of The Lema-Fernandes Study Abroad Scholarship ($7,500) is junior Aidan Viveiros, a Justice Studies and Sociology double major, who is minoring in Portuguese. He will be studying two months in Lisbon.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Rhode Island College’s to honor outstanding Portuguese Studies students