For years, the award-winning Nevada Union High School choir has been a trademark staple not only for NUHS but also Nevada County.

Music lovers of all ages have enjoyed the musical musings of the choir, under the direction of Rod Baggett.

Offering support for the choral department is NUHS' Booster Club, which is a parent organization whose mission is to further the success not only of the NUHS choir as a whole but also the students who compose the choir itself.

According to the NUHS Web site, The Booster Club's main function is to raise funds that help cover the costs of: Concert outfits, choir festivals fees, transportation to choir festivals and events, and as a supplement in the school budget for music costs.

Perhaps the area where The Boosters Club is able to affect students most is found in the thousands of dollars of scholarships, given to students each year.

At the concert on May 25 seven scholarships were awarded by the choir's Boosters Club, four of $500 each to graduating seniors and three of up to $1,000 to alumni.

The seniors are James Borsky, who will attend University of Redlands to major in Music Composition and Theater Arts; Gretchen Stevens, who will attend Cal State Sacramento, majoring in voice and opera performance; Brittany Brooks (received the Wanda Baggett award for highest - 4.3 - GPA) will study music at UC Santa Barbara; and Liana Rose Campus, who will attend the University of Puget Sound to major in natural science and physics.

Alumni include Dalyn Sale-Whalley, Class of 2003, who is attending Cal State Long Beach, majoring in choral music and vocal education with hopes of becoming a choir director; Jason Hunt, Class of 2003, who is attending The Masters College, majoring in music with an emphasis in composition and singing in several singing groups there with hopes of pursuing advanced degrees in music; and Kelsey Austin, Class of 2005, who is attending Sierra College, majoring in music, with plans to transfer to Cal State Sacramento to participate in both vocal and instrumental music programs.

Hopefully, with the continued fund raising efforts of The NUHS Choir Boosters, Nevada Union Alumni will continue to make notes outside of Nevada County and the community will be privilege to many years of beautiful music still to come.

For more information about the NUHS Boosters Club, please contact Ellie Lightfoot at (530) 478-0905.

Dance scholarships offered as well

Scholarships were also awarded in dance to other Nevada Union alumni at California State University, Long Beach.

Students received scholarships after they performed a self-choreographed solo before judges. They are Jordan Isadore (2005), who earned The Lana Alper Scholarship; Samantha Corn (2003), who earned The Dramatic Allied Arts Guild Scholarship; Sienna Powell (2005), who earned The Gloria Newman Scholarship and Tara McArthur (2003) who earned The Harvey Wagner School Scholarship.