School of Journalism and Radio-Television-Film dual majors Kayla Freeman and Torrie Hardcastle and Communication Sciences and Disorders major Allison Wong will each receive a $3,000 scholarship from the Association for Women in Communications, Austin Professional Chapter (AWC Austin).
Kayla Freeman
The Jo Caldwell Meyer Scholarship awards will be presented at the AWC Austin’s annual Banner Brunch on April 28. Each year, the organization presents scholarships to a select number of deserving female communications undergraduates in central Texas at a brunch that more than 200 professionals from the field attend.
Freeman said the scholarship will allow her more time to work on a multimedia portfolio project that documents the experiences of immigrants in Austin.
“I love what I am studying because I believe that art and media reflect the cultural values of humanity at any given era,” said Freeman. “Not only is the money an amazing help financially, the networking opportunities within the AWC that this award may provide are invaluable.”
Allison Wong
Wong plans to use the money to pursue a master’s at UT this fall and ultimately become a licensed speech-language pathologist.
“In order to become licensed, I need to earn a master's degree in my field,” said Wong. “This scholarship will help me pay for tuition and ultimately bring me closer to my goals – I am very grateful!”
Hardcastle said the award will help finance her move to New York this summer, where she will intern in the magazine industry.
“I'm extremely proud of the work I've done at the UT School of Journalism, and to have that hard work recognized and rewarded by a group of talented, industry professionals is a great feeling,” said Hardcastle. “This scholarship will be an amazing resource as I move to New York.”
AWC Austin leadership said that 2012 marks the largest quantity and highest total dollar amount of scholarships awarded in the chapter’s history.
Torrie Hardcastle
“ This year's scholarship recipients were chosen from an exceptional field of candidates,” said Julie Tereshchuk, president of AWC Austin. “I look forward to following the progress of these rising stars and future leaders of our industry.”
Keri Bellacosa, anchor for KTBC Fox 7, will emcee the annual awards presentation, which will also honor five of Austin’s top female communicators along with a keynote address by Deb Bauer, director of strategic giving and community engagement for Dell, Inc.
The event will occur Saturday, April 28 at the Hyatt Regency Austin from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The awards ceremony will start at 11:30 a.m. For more information, visit the Banner Brunch website.
