The Villagers 2025 Scholarship Recipients
Scholarships awarded in the amount of $12,500 were shared among two outstanding university students with a proven interest in the field of historic preservation. Recipients were Linda Lyons, a doctoral candidate in Historic Preservation at the University of Florida, and Grace Mikrut, a graduate student in Architecture at the University of Miami.
Linda Lyons is focused on her passion for recognizing, saving, and restoring historic African-American churches. Her dissertation, “Fortresses of Strength and Sanctuary: The Historic Civil Rights Churches of Wallace Rayfield,” delves into the work of Rayfield, who was the second formally trained African American architect in the United States. Her research centers on work that is architecturally significant and also embodies a great human story. She plans to teach historic preservation after graduation.
An early pastime in woodworking led to Grace Mikrut’s interest in historic preservation and architecture. “This appreciation for traditional methods developed into a passion for preserving historic buildings when I moved to South Florida for college. I witnessed firsthand the importance of preserving the city’s rich history through its buildings,” said Mikrut. Her goal is to open a Florida-based practice in residential architecture that will encompass historic homes.
The students were selected from a field of applicants based on scholastic standing, recommendations, samples of their work and statements of interest in preservation of past architecture.
The scholarships are the most recent in the more than 200 university scholarships The Villagers have presented to students who are either from Miami-Dade County or enrolled in Florida universities. Recipients must have a proven interest in historic preservation.
L-R: Scholarship Recipients Linda Lyons (University of Florida) and Grace Mikrut (University of Miami) w/Villagers Mary Beth Burke and Kelley Schild