The Junior Service League of LaGrange has honored a veteran Troup County educator as the 2017 Mollie Lukken Scholarship recipient.

Trissa Nerowski, an exceptional education teacher at Whitesville Road Elementary School, was recognized Aug. 24 at a meeting of the League’s sustaining members in the Ida Callaway Hudson Lab Sciences Building at LaGrange College. Both Ida Hudson and Mollie Lukken were founding members of Junior Service League who led pioneering JSL volunteer programs to provide services for students with learning disabilities.

The scholarship, established in 1984 after Lukken’s tragic death in a traffic accident, is presented annually to a local teacher pursuing graduate study in the field of special education.

Nerowski is enrolled in a doctoral program at Northcentral University and is currently writing her dissertation.

“We were impressed by her achievements and outstanding recommendations,” said Sue Duttera, chairman of the Mollie Lukken Scholarship Committee. “She is the first recipient we have had who is pursuing a PhD in special education.”

Debra Brock, principal of Whitesville Road Elementary, described Nerowski as “responsible, determined and dedicated.”

In her recommendation, Brock wrote, “Trissa has a passion for students with exceptional needs. She establishes relationships with students that foster stability, trust and commitment to meeting their needs that prove to be effective and support the learning environment.”

Nerowski’s research examines teacher attrition, focusing on “investigating strategies to inspire, support and maintain educators in the field of special education.” In her scholarship application, she said, “I hope my legacy will be a pool of teachers who are dynamic, energetic, proactive, inspirational and joy-filled for their careers.”

Junior Service League has awarded more than $40,000 to local teachers since the scholarship’s inception.