Each year, Fredonia students hoping to enter the medical field spend thousands of dollars to take preparatory courses for the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) and to apply to medical schools. It is why local Fredonia potter and biology professor Dr. Ted Lee started the Health Professional School Preparation Scholarship Fund through the Fredonia College Foundation.
A pottery sale to benefit the fund will be held Wednesday, Nov. 14, in the Williams Center Multipurpose Room, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event is open to the public.
Beginning in 2015, potters at Fredonia and in the immediate area began showing and selling their work on campus, including handcrafted mugs, jewelry and bowls, and then donating part of their profits to the fund. The proceeds go toward helping students who lack the financial resources to take exams and apply to medical school.
Potters include Fredonia faculty and staff members Dr. Lee (Department of Biology), Dr. David Rudge (School of Music) and Chief Ann Burns (University Police). Other potters who will be selling their works are Michele Ballachino, former faculty member Ann Janik, Debbie Kotar, Rhonda Lee, Carol Samuelson and Cynthia Fitzgerald.
All of the potters created their works on the pottery wheels at Mudslingers, a pottery studio in downtown Fredonia owned and operated by Fredonia alumnus Ron Nasca, who is a strong supporter and teacher of the potters.