Bridgewater College senior Jessica A. McClean received the first annual college scholarship of $1,000 from the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA).
McClean, a consumer and family sciences major, was a six-year member of Virginia FCCLA and served on the State Executive Council for two terms – first as vice president of community service and later as vice president of programs. She served as a chapter officer and participated in STAR (Students Taking Action with Recognition) Events. She currently serves on FCCLA’s Alumni & Associates executive board.
“Through FCCLA, I made friendships, gained leadership skills and had experiences that I will remember forever,” said McClean. “I want to be a family and consumer sciences teacher so that I can help students learn valuable life skills and give them the same opportunities that I had in middle and high school.”
As a student at Bridgewater, McClean has been a member of the Student Senate, volunteered with Big Brother Big Sisters of Harrisonburg-Rockingham County and was a team leader for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.
The daughter of Tammy Mendyk and Craig McClean, both of Harrisonburg, Va., McLean will teach middle-school family and consumer sciences for the Fairfax County Public Schools.
FCCLA is a nonprofit national career and technical student organization for young men and women in family and consumer sciences education in public and private school through grade 12. Since 1945, FCCLA members have been making a difference in their families, careers and communities by addressing important personal, work and societal issues through family and consumer sciences education.
Today more than 190,000 members in nearly 6,500 chapters are active in a network of associations in the U.S., the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.