SALEM, MA – Mayor Dominick Pangallo has announced that the City of Salem, in partnership with Waste Management, has awarded the winners of the 2026 City of Salem and Waste Management Scholarships, and would like to thank this year’s participants for their excellent submissions. The annual program offers scholarships to Salem students pursuing a college or graduate level program and invites applicants to submit an essay on a topic related to sustainability. This year, scholars shared their ideas about how to reduce solid waste in Salem.
Mariam Aleksanyan ($1,500 scholarship) is a graduate of Salem High School and will be attending Boston College. Mariam’s essay advocated for cafeteria share tables to cut down on school food waste, as well as increased public accessibility to compost drop-off sites.
Brennan Connor ($1,500 scholarship) is a graduate of New Liberty Innovation School with plans to attend North Shore Community College for Aviation Management. Brennan’s essay proposed school-run gardens use composted food waste to create healthy soils, reduce greenhouse gases, and provide hands-on environmental learning while improving nutrition.
Miles Kelleher ($1,500 scholarship) will be attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the fall for Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Miles’s essay detailed how a GIS-based waste and recycling map would provide the data for targeted education, while improving collection efficiency and municipal design.
Azriel Taguiam ($1,500 scholarship) is a graduate of Salem Academy Charter School and is studying Public Health at Boston College. Azriel’s essay addressed waste in healthcare settings and suggested reusable equipment and sustainable packaging to rethink institutional practices and inspire change across the sector.
Caroline Guthrie ($1,000 scholarship) will be pursuing a degree in Library and Information Science at Simmons University. Caroline’s essay discussed how public libraries and schools could further community outreach and recycling education and highlighted the importance of expanding compost drop-off sites in Salem.
Mia Silva ($1,000 scholarship) is a graduate of Salem High School and will be attending Amherst College to major in History. Mia’s essay shared how Salem High’s cafeteria composting program expanded her understanding of waste issues and offered suggestions on how to reach more Salem residents with composting and recycling education.
Henry Worth ($1,000 scholarship) attended Essex Technical High School and now studies Civil Engineering at UMass Lowell. Henry’s essay emphasized the importance of reducing single-use plastic through incentives to businesses as well as centralizing waste collection to improve waste truck routes.
