Cheverus Stories

Danny McCartney ’24 is the 2023–2024 recipient of the Elizabeth Gillis and Leonard F. Ahern Memorial Scholarship. Through a Cheverus selection committee process, the scholarship recipient, a current senior with demonstrated need, is awarded $30,000 toward college. Leonard Ahern was a lifelong teacher in the Washington, DC metro area. This scholarship was established and is named after him and his beloved mother in 2008. 

The committee assesses candidates on their fulfillment of the “Grad at Grad:” being open to growth, intellectually competent, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice. McCartney wrote in his application essay, “Learning amongst incredible peers in the personal, engaging, and transformative environment that is Cheverus has given me the experiences to grow as a thinker, collaborator, and person.” Further, he said, “My experiences since the fall of 2020 have proven to me that Cheverus is the perfect environment for me to cultivate and explore my mind.” 
When asked what receiving this scholarship meant to him, McCartney said, “I am very excited to have received this scholarship. This creates a lot of opportunities for me.” He is the son of Gaylene and John McCartney ’84 and lives in Westbrook. He plans to study biology in college and hopes to have a career focused on research or policy.