New York Jets General Manager Mike Tannenbaum, his wife Michelle, and their two children on Wednesday afternoon awarded two recent Ridge High School graduates, who also are members of the Somerset Hills YMCA, with what the YMCA describes as the first annual Tannenbaum family scholarship.

The awards went to Alexandra Hershberger and Andrew Scaglione, township residents who both graduated in June. Hershberger, who will long rank as one of the high school's top golfers, plans to attend the University of Virginia, where her major will be in some aspect of economics. Scaglione said he is planning to study broadcast journalism, including radio, television and production studies, at Syracuse University in New York State.

The students were chosen based on their plans to pursue studies and a career in some aspect of sports management, said Robert Lomauro, president and chief executive at the YMCA.

Mike Tannenbaum, who said he moved with his family to Basking Ridge in 2008, has in recent years been a member of the YMCA's Board of Directors.

"We just feel like it is an honor to give back" to what has become the family's hometown, he explained.

Along with Michelle Tannenbaum, son Jacob, 5, and daughter Ella, 8, also asked questions of applicants who were seeking the scholarship, he said.

"Inquisitor" Jacob Tannenbaum asked potential scholarship winners what is their favorite ice cream flavor, he said.

Meanwhile, Ella Tannenbaum took a closer look at the applicants' characters, asking applicants what they had recently done that was nice for someone else, the family reported.

Michelle Tannenbaum said she had asked how applicants had chosen the college they plan to attend.

The Tannenbaum scholarship was initially intended to go only to one recipient, Lomauro said. This year's award was $1,500 apiece, he said.

But he and the Tannenbaums said they ended up selecting both Scaglione and Hershberger.

The YMCA also gives out other scholarships, including the Millicent Fenwick Scholarship and the John Fanning Scholarship, said Alison Buxton, the YMCA's vice president of development.

Linda Sadlouskos contributed to this story.