La Lumiere Senior Awarded Northwest Indiana Partners for Clean Air Scholarship

La Lumiere senior Quentin Funderburg ‘21 was awarded one of the three Northwest Indiana Partners for Clean Air scholarships. Quentin is set to attend Williams College in the fall and plans to study chemistry and environmental science. Over his time at La Lumiere, the campus setting has had an impact on him: “The campus of La Lumiere is in a forest, and this helps me connect with the environment,” Quentin said. “I’ve always had an underlying passion for the natural world. On campus, being here, in the forest with the trees and the lake, serves as a daily reminder about how much I appreciate it.”

Quentin has put this passion into practice by helping to start La Lumiere’s Environmental Club on campus. “I wanted to educate students and faculty about how we could be as sustainable as possible. I wanted to improve our practices on campus as best I could.” Quentin has found support in other students and faculty, but he highlights Mr. Balhoff, La Lumiere’s Science Department chair, as a continuous support throughout the creation of the club and in his choice of academic pursuits at Williams College.

Science department chair Brett Balhoff added, "Quentin has continuously shown a passion for the environment throughout his career at La Lumiere. His devotion to the Environmental Club, his participation in the environmentally focused trip to Cape Eleuthera Institute, and his help in the sustainability-focused La Lu Garden are all examples of his focus on environmental principles."

As Quentin looks ahead, he realizes there is a lot of work to do and plans to take his passion beyond the campus of La Lumiere. “As a society, we need to understand that there is a lot that needs to be done in order to address how sustainable we are,” Quentin said. “I plan to do what I can to help improve our sustainability through research and science. Hopefully as a society, we can mitigate the climate crisis.” 

The scholarship winners were selected from among the participants by their competitive essay, which was evaluated by the Partners for Clean Air Steering Committee.