Luncheon honors Berks' Best and recipients of more than 120 scholarships
The annual Berks County Community Foundation Scholarship Luncheon was held Wednesday at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Reading.
Kim Sheffer, lifelong learning program officer for the foundation, said the awards given out to recipients represented a $700,000 investment in the future of the community. More than 120 scholarships were awarded, some to multiple students, this year.
The Berks' Best award winners also were recognized. Each Berks County high school is given the opportunity to nominate up to two seniors in each of the 11 categories.
This year's winners: business: Ariyan Patel, Wyomissing; career and technical education: Devra Longacre, Brandywine Heights; communications: Sydney Guida, Fleetwood; computer science: Truman Peters, Wyomissing; mathematics: Jasper Platt, Wyomissing; performing arts: Ariel Metzger Conrad Weiser; science/environment: Samson Evans, Muhlenberg; social studies, Pearl Caldwell, Wyomissing; the Taylor Seitzinger community service and leadership award: Garrett Hyneman, Gov. Mifflin; visual arts: Mackenzie Stoudt, Kutztown; and world languages, Gianna Johnson, Exeter.
Some of the 2025 Berks' Best award winners who attended the Berks County Community Foundation Scholarship Luncheon Wednesday, May 21, 2025. From left, are Mackenzie Stoudt, a Kutztown High senior, Garrett Hyneman, a Gov. Mifflin senior, Samson Evans, a Muhlenberg senior, Ariel Metzger, a Conrad Weiser senior and Gianna Johnson, an Exeter senior. (Susan Miers Smith - Reading Eagle)
The Wyomissing students were unable to attend due to senior day obligations.
Dr. Radha Pyati, chancellor of Penn State Berks since 2023, was the keynote speaker.
She has a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from Ohio State University and a Ph.D. in chemistry from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to taking the Penn State job, she served as dean of the college of science and mathematics at West Chester University.
Pyati called Wednesday 'a day filled with pride, promise and possibility.'
She said she tapped ChatGPT to write her speech, saying she wanted to stay current with what she called the latest newfangled things.
'Today's ChatGPT was yesterday's smartphone and that was the computer of 30 or 40 years ago,' Pyati said.
She said the artificial intelligence results were good in some places and shared a part she kept for her address.
'I realized it lacked some things, so I wrote those things myself,' she said. 'First of all, the speech did not speak at all to Berks County and believe me, I asked it to.
'Berks County is special. Berks has some amazing students who come from a wide range of backgrounds and high schools — urban, suburban and rural. Berks schools, teachers and families offer our kids some amazing experiences that rival those in any county anywhere.'
The AI speech did not even touch that, she said. Secondly, the AI speech made up a story of a student named Maya.
'I don't know that story and I wanted to share some real stories from people I've actually known and admired,' she said.
Pyati emphasized that it was important for the students to find their voices and that their original thinking, their original ideas will make the most difference in the future.
'Only you, your unique voice, your special strengths, what you bring will make your original contributions to this world groundbreaking and one of a kind,' Pyati said. 'So use the best tools you have and go out there and write the next chapter of your story.'
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