By Melanie Petrucci, Contributing Writer
Shrewsbury – The Corridor Nine Area Chamber of Commerce announced its 2017 Scholar Award recipients in March. Sixteen scholars were selected and will share $11,425 in Scholarships. Madison Dugan, a senior at Shrewsbury High School (SHS), is the only SHS senior to receive this award.
Madison (“Madi”) is an accomplished young woman and she will put this award to good use when she enters Villanova University in Philadelphia in the fall.
“I was absolutely honored to receive the scholarship and I honestly didn’t think I would because of the tough competition,” Madison said.
Madison spent five years competitively dancing at Rhythm Dance Company in Westborough. Then she switched gears to concentrate on volunteerism and has never looked back. It has been very rewarding personally. She began at St. Anne’s Free Medical Clinic which is also her parish. She served for two years and she was humbled to see the hard work of the doctors who also volunteered.
In addition to St. Anne’s, she is a student liaison to the Shrewsbury Youth & Family Services Board of Directors.
“I absolutely love it and it’s such an eye-opening experience to see all the hard work that they do for our community,” she said.
She was recently on their winning team of Trailblazers, their teen leadership program, and she was asked to speak at their annual breakfast last fall.
As Madison finishes her senior year, she is busy with exams, volunteering and working part-time as a waitress. When asked how she does it all she said, “It’s difficult, and I thought that as my senior year wound down that I would have more time, but that’s not proving to be true.”
She keeps a very tight schedule.
“I’m a person that needs to be busy,” she said. “I feel that the things that I do with my time are meaningful. I am happy and don’t mind being busy because I love what I do.”
Madison will study business at Villanova and she aspires to be a biomedical administrator.
Family is important to Madison. Her parents, Jean and Brian Dugan, are the source of her inspiration.
“My dad is the hardest working person I know,” she noted. “He gave me my work ethic. Then my mom is the most loving and giving person I know. She was always involved with our schools and the town.”
She also has a younger sister who is a sophomore at SHS.
“I look up to her so much and she is one of my best friends,” she said.
As involved as Madison is in her community, she is equally involved at school. She is a leader. She has been active in National Honor Society, Math and English Honor Societies, Business Club and peer mentoring. She was recently asked to serve as the student on the panel to hire a new assistant principal.
In her free time, Madison enjoys spending time with her friends, going to the beach and the pool, and watching movies.
“This summer I look forward to spending quality time with my friends before we all leave in September,” she said.