Date: May 15, 2008

Hofstra Junior/Pennsauken Resident Rachael Higgins Wins Full Scholarship to Prestigious Idyllwild Arts Center in California

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY: Rachael Higgins, a fine arts major at Hofstra University, has won a full scholarship to the prestigious Idyllwild Arts Center Summer Program. Rachael, 20, is a junior at Hofstra. She is originally from Marlton, New Jersey, but she and her family are currently residing in Pennsauken.

For 50 years, the Idyllwild Summer Program, a very prestigious arts colony located approximately 40 miles outside of Los Angeles in Idyllwild, California, has offered children, teens and adults unique opportunities in the visual arts, creative writing, dance, music and theater - taught by some of America's finest artists.

Rachael was recommended for the scholarship by Laurie Fendrich, a Hofstra professor of fine arts who recently had a solo exhibition of her own work at the Katharina Rich Perlow Gallery in Manhattan. Rachael was also nominated by visiting professor of fine arts Peter Plagens, a painter and former staff art critic for Newsweek who taught a seminar in Hofstra’s Comparative Arts and Culture program this past spring. He is now a contributing editor for Newsweek.

Rachael says she hopes the experience at Idyllwild will allow her to strengthen her portfolio, and she says she is also interested in "seeing what other young artists her age, outside of Hofstra, are doing."

She describes her painting as "spatially involved." In the art studio at Hofstra’s Calkins Hall, she often brings in sketches, pictures and shapes that interest and inspire her work. As for her career plans, Rachael says, "My goal is to become a painter and to be able to live off of my work, but I have also thought about teaching art at the high school or collegiate level."

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution where students can choose from about 145 undergraduate and 155 graduate programs in liberal arts and sciences, business, communication, education and allied human services, and honors studies, as well as a School of Law. With a student-faculty ratio of 14-to-1, our professors teach small classes averaging 22 students that emphasize interaction, critical thinking and analysis. Hofstra offers a faculty whose highest priority is teaching excellence, cutting edge technology, extensive library resources, internships and special educational programs that appeal to their interests and abilities.  The Hofstra community is driven, dynamic and energetic, helping students find and focus their strengths to prepare them for a successful future.