Seven girls have been awarded scholarships to fund their extra-curricular activities during the 2012-2013 academic year.The awards were provided by the Bermuda Women’s Council, a Government appointed council under the Ministry of Youth, Families and Sports, and were raised primarily through a March fundraising event. The funds for all scholarships together totalled $2,650.The award recipients were Tesyah-Mahle Astwood, Zharia Bean, La’Teaka Dehaney, Alayah Heath, Angelae Heath, Maya Pacio and Tatijana Swainson. The girls attend various primary and high schools Islandwide and will be participating in a range of extra-curricular activities including dance, sign language, Spanish classes, piano and hockey.This is the first year the scholarships have been awarded, and they were presented at an event on Monday where the Minister of Youth, Families and Sports, Glenn Blakeney, and the chairwoman and deputy chairwoman of the Bermuda Women’s Council, Laurie Shiell and Melody Parris respectively, met with the awardees.Mr Blakeney said: “It was such a pleasure to meet with the first recipients of the Extracurricular Scholarships for Girls. Extracurricular activities are so important for helping to create a rounded individual as they assist young girls with character building, as well as teaching them lifelong skills which they will carry with them into adulthood.”Ms Shiell said: “I am delighted and excited about this scholarship and I am grateful for the Minister’s support with this endeavour. These young ladies will be afforded the opportunities for developing a variety of social and personal skills which may help them to become productive members of our community.“The Bermuda Women’s Council believes that a scholarship toward extra-curricular activities for girls is very important, as studies show that girls involved in extra-curricular activities receive higher grades than those who are not involved in such activities and additionally, these activities have been shown to improve the overall student.”The awards were launched in March 2012 in celebration of International Women’s Day 2012 which had the theme: “Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures”.