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Sister Jerome receives McGuffey Pioneer Award
Sister Jerome honored for dedication to education
By Denise Dick
YOUNGSTOWN
Sister Jerome Corcoran is known for dedicating her life to education, and she earned the William Holmes McGuffey Historical Society’s Pioneer Award for that service.
Sister Jerome, who will turn 100 in April, founded Millcreek Children’s Center and the Youngstown Community School. In 2012, she started Sister Jerome’s Poor, a ministry that provides assistance to families to help them overcome obstacles to their children’s education.
At the award presentation Friday at William Holmes McGuffey Elementary School, she urged students to decide what they want to do when they grow up and to stick with it.
“And then one day, you can be proud to say, ‘I said I was going to do it, and I did it,’” Sister Jerome said.
Richard Scarsella, historical society president, presented Sister Jerome with a $1,000 check from the society for her birthday. Society members also got her a 5-foot-high birthday cake, donated by Jimmy’s Bakery & Deli.
“We know you’ll use the money to help young boys and girls continue their education,” he said.
McGuffey, called America’s schoolmaster, created the “McGuffey Reader,” the first standardized reading text that was used by most schools in the United States during the mid-to-late 19th century.
He lived near Youngstown as a child.
Retired state Sen. Harry Meshel called Sister Jerome “one of the finest individuals, most productive, and one of the most-beloved people this area has ever created.”
Meshel is a past Pioneer Award recipient.
Al Bright, last year’s Pioneer Award winner, said “Youngstown, Ohio, is a better place because she walked the earth.”
Bright is an artist and Youngstown State University professor emeritus. He was the first black full-service YSU faculty member.
Pianist Michael Nichols, a Chaney graduate and YSU music-performance major, entertained students during the program first with a classical piece followed by a selection from Disney’s “The Lion King.”
A centennial celebration for Sister Jerome is set for Oct. 11 at the Georgetown Banquet Center in Boardman. All proceeds from the dinner will support Sister Jerome’s Poor.