Over the past 30 years, the Cape Cod Alumni Network has proudly awarded more than $445,000 to 150 local students entering their first year at UMass Amherst.   

The impact of this support has been transformative for students, beginning with those transferring into UMass Amherst from Cape Cod Community College in the early days of the scholarship and now high school seniors from the 22 cities and towns that make up the Cape and Islands.

For several years now, the network has chosen nine awardees, providing eight scholarships of $3,000 and one scholarship of $4,000.  

The recipients come to UMass with different goals and interests, but they all possess the curiosity and ambition necessary to excel at the state’s flagship institution.

“As a result of [receiving the Cape Cod Alumni Network Scholarship], I was able to pursue higher education with more confidence and explore internship and volunteer opportunities that will further my career success without the burden of paying off student debt."

Hailey Fink '28

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During her time at UMass so far, Fink has taken on a minor in natural resource conservation, interned with the Association to Preserve Cape Cod, served as a shorebird monitor with Mass Audubon, and is pursuing both the Certificate in Integrated Concentration in STEM (iCONS) on the Food, Water, & Climate Track and the Five College Coastal & Marine Science Certificate.

Multiple past awardees have stayed in Massachusetts after graduation to work in public schools, health care, finance, and the alternative energy and technology sectors. Others have gone on to pursue graduate degrees at places like Stanford and the University of Cambridge in the UK.

Sheryl Lajoie '69, chair of the network’s scholarship committee, says choosing the recipients each year and honoring their achievements let’s her “know that there’s hope in the world.” Lajoie and her fellow committee members have worked closely with guidance counselors in the area and are dedicated to recognizing the most promising students each year.

“They are academically great. They are involved in their community and their schools,” she says. “We ask them to write an essay, and some of them really open up. They tug at your heartstrings.”

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The fundraising for the scholarship began with a golf tournament. “We built up from a little par three tournament to an event at a private golf course in Mashpee,” Lajoie says. “Everyone wanted to play that course, so it became quite the fundraiser.”

Then, the COVID-19 pandemic put the golf tournaments on hold. Donations from longtime network members, including an estate gift, kept the scholarship afloat.

Network members had also partnered with UMass Amherst Advancement to solicit donations through UMassGives, a two-day online giving campaign scheduled each year around Founders Day. In April 2026, the network surpassed its $6,500 UMassGives goal with gifts from more than 60 donors.

"We're not a huge group," says Lajoie, "but we want more people to get involved."

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This summer, the network held its annual Seaside Celebration at the Wychmere Beach Club in Harwich Port. The event honored the nine 2026-27 scholarship recipients and featured remarks by former awardee Kaelly Farrell '23, who now works as a senior research associate for Moderna.

"It was an impressive talk," says Lajoie. "She's working on mRNA vaccines. That's no small thing for the incoming kids to hear about, and it's not a small thing for us alumni to hear."

Connor Hall '30, one of this year's scholarship recipients, described the celebratory atmosphere: "Seeing generations of the Cape Cod Alumni Network together reminded me that I'm joining a truly special lifelong community."

As the university's reputation for excellence and affordability continues to grow, network members are aiming to raise additional support for more talented students from the Cape and Islands, opening doors to the same life-changing opportunities they had at UMass.

"I admire UMass for always trying to improve. I had a wonderful experience at UMass. It gave me friends that I still have. I met my husband there. And it prepared me well for my career. I want future students to have the same experience."

Sheryl Lajoie '69

You can help support future leaders from Cape Cod and the Islands with a gift to the Cape Cod Alumni Network Scholarship.