Pellegrini Scholarship winners GiiGii Gray and Claire Kornacki
Two students in Milwaukee Area Technical College’s Television and Video Production program will share a scholarship founded last year in the memory of a longtime, highly respected engineer at Milwaukee PBS.
GiiGii Gray and Claire Kornacki won the Ron Pellegrini Scholarship, which recognizes promising Television and Video Production associate degree students. Recipients are chosen based on academics, financial need and the student's dedication to a broadcasting career.
Gray and Kornacki had outstanding applications, said Kevin Pulz, chair of the Television and Video Production and Digital Content Creation programs.
“We had quite a difficult choice,” Pulz said. “Honestly, it was too difficult to choose between the two finalists. Their applications, background, scholarship and potential in this industry were excellent.”
Both students will receive $500 each semester during the 2025-26 academic year. They also got Hawaiian shirts from the Pellegrini family, an homage to Pellegrini’s propensity for wearing such shirts, Pulz said.
Pellegrini, one of the most technically astute engineers on the Milwaukee PBS staff, died in September 2023 at the age of 68. His family worked with the MATC Foundation, the college's philanthropic partner, to start the scholarship last year.
Isabela Riveros, who earned her associate degree in May 2025, won the inaugural scholarship.
Gray and Kornacki are working at Milwaukee PBS this summer and are scheduled to complete their degrees in May 2026, Pulz said.
“Pursuing a role in the broadcast and television industry is proving to be an amazing and enlightening journey,” Gray wrote in her scholarship application. “I’ve moved past a general awareness that productions are a lot of work to truly recognize the vast scope of that work. When I see myself working in this industry, I know it means understanding the meticulous detail, countless hours, problem-solving, and collaborative efforts required to bring even a single segment to fruition.”
“Being in the television/broadcast industry means that you want to make the world a better place through bringing a light to things people may not notice in their everyday life,” Kornacki wrote. “And maybe even provide a solution that people can go to to help make that change a reality.”
Learn about MATC's Television and Video Production program
About MATC: Wisconsin’s largest technical college and one of the most diverse two-year institutions in the Midwest, Milwaukee Area Technical College is a key driver of southeastern Wisconsin’s economy and has provided innovative education in the region since 1912. More than 30,000 students per year attend the college’s four campuses and community-based sites or learn online. MATC offers affordable and accessible education and training opportunities that empower and transform lives in the community. The college offers more than 180 academic programs — many that prepare students for jobs immediately upon completion and others that provide transfer options leading to bachelor’s degrees with more than 40 four-year colleges and universities. Overwhelmingly, MATC graduates build careers and businesses in southeastern Wisconsin. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
About the MATC Foundation: As the college’s philanthropic partner, the MATC Foundation’s mission is to build donor relationships to facilitate private investments that remove barriers to education, accelerate careers, and deliver skilled talent to the Milwaukee area. The Foundation also serves as the financial steward of private donations to Milwaukee PBS, a viewer-supported service of MATC. Committed to a prosperous region built on expansive access to education and economic opportunities, the Foundation collaborates with civic leaders, employers, community partners, and MATC alumni, to promote economic opportunity for MATC students, their families, and our entire region.