Alex and Ani, Paiva Weed to be honored at N.E. Higher Education Excellence Awards ceremony

STATE SEN. President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, along with Alex and Ani, will be recognized in March at the 2016 New England Higher Education Excellence Awards ceremony in Boston. / PBN FILE PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO
STATE SEN. President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, along with Alex and Ani, will be recognized in March at the 2016 New England Higher Education Excellence Awards ceremony in Boston. / PBN FILE PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO

Alex and Ani and state Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed will be recognized at the 2016 New England Higher Education Excellence Awards ceremony in Boston in March.
The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) selected both to be honored at this year’s ceremony.
Paiva Weed will receive the Rhode Island State Merit Award. Since 2014, Paiva Weed has involved herself with the “Rhode to Work” initiative to help students be better prepared for the workforce, and thus bring more economic prosperity to the state of Rhode Island. Through her efforts in higher education, Paiva Weed also made efforts to bridge educational institutions with workforce development and built connections with Rhode Island business leaders and national experts. She also helped public higher education institutions reformulate their funding that resulted in increasing the 2016 state budget by $7.5 million, according to a news release from the New England Board of Higher Education.
Cranston-based Alex and Ani will be given the 2016 Business Contribution to Higher Education award. The jewelry company has contributed millions of dollars toward colleges and universities in the state. Including $1 million for the Alex and Ani Hall at Rhode Island College. In all, more than $28 million has been donated to charitable organizations by Alex and Ani, the release said.
The ceremony will be held at the Boston Marriott Long Wharf Hotel March 4 and will honor award recipients from six New England states that have gone above and beyond in their support for higher education endeavors.
“Our 2016 Rhode Island winners exemplify the creative thinking that is helping Rhode Island build a 21st century economy,” NEBHE President and CEO Michael K. Thomas said in a statement.

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