Sara Loy receives Brown Fellowship at Centre College

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Sara Loy of Richmond

DANVILLE, KY (09/28/2011)(readMedia)-- Sara Loy of Richmond is one of 10 first-year students at Centre College to receive "full-ride-plus" scholarships as part of The Brown Fellows Program. The initiative, in collaboration with the James Graham Brown Foundation, covers not only tuition and room and board but four remarkable summer enrichment programs, field-based experiential learning opportunities, on-campus program mentors, and customized leadership projects.

Loy, a graduate of Model Laboratory School, traveled with other Brown Fellows this summer to Rome, Naples, Florence and Venice on a tour of Italy. During her time there she was part of a select group that wrote articles for publication in the Italian magazine, La Gazzetta Italiana.

"Throughout the trip, my group and I would meet periodically and go over the subtopics of our focus," Loy says. "We'd sit together on the bus and one person would discuss history and tourism within the Vatican or history in Italy versus history in the U.S.

"I now have an opinion on a fascinating topic - a topic I wouldn't have thought of without the article," Loy adds. "I certainly can't look at tourism in foreign countries - especially Italy - the same way."

The Brown Fellowship is one of the most competitive undergraduate scholarships in Kentucky and is among the top scholarship programs in the nation. Centre is the only private college in Kentucky selected for a Brown Fellows Program.

Loy's connection to Centre came through her great-uncle, who worked at the College. "When we'd visit him, Danville seemed like such a quintessential college town," she says. "It always looked so cozy and supportive of its school, and it is! Centre is one of the one of the best schools in the state and country and a close-knit liberal arts college, two things I really wanted."

She also says she was "completely bewitched by Centre's study-abroad program. I've always wanted to study abroad, something Centre supports totally. It's a great match for me all-around."

Loy is the daughter of Stephen and Marianna Loy of Richmond.

Founded in 1819, Centre College is ranked among the U.S. News top 50 national liberal arts colleges, at 42nd in the nation, and ranks 27th for best value among national liberalarts colleges. Forbes magazine ranks Centre 34th among all the nation's colleges and universities and has named Centre in the top five among all institutions of higher education in the South for three years in a row. The 2010 Open Doors Report, published by the Institute for International Education, ranks the College second in the nation for percentage of students who study abroad.