JEA awards 3 Future Journalism Teacher Scholarships
Three students — two in graduate degree programs and one in an undergraduate program — are this year’s recipients of the Future Journalism Teacher Scholarships. Each will receive $1,000 from the national Journalism Education Association to help them earn their degrees.
The award recipients are Jessica Hunziker, MJE, Kent (Ohio) State University, and Jacqueline Hyman, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, both seeking master’s degrees; and Alexandra J. Crome, senior in journalism and English education, Emporia (Kansas) State University.
Hunziker of Englewood, Colorado, says her career as an adviser began in 2008 when her college professor recommended she observe advisers Kristi Rathbun, MJE, and Jack Kennedy, MJE, at Rock Canyon High School. “It didn’t take me long to figure out that these were special people, ones I would be fortunate to work with.” Since then, she has joined the board of the Colorado Student Media Association and helped with the JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention in Denver. In his letter of recommendation, Kennedy said, “What is truly impressive is Jessica’s interest in continuing her education, continuing to hone her skills and expand her knowledge.”
Hyman of Silver Spring, Maryland, credits her high school journalism teacher with her choice to earn a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She is working on a master’s in education with a focus in secondary English, serving as a teaching assistant in the required freshman History, Roles and Structures of Journalism. Hyman said she would love to combine her passions by teaching journalism to students and helping shape them into critical thinkers and talented writers. “I hope to be an influential teacher that gives students the tools to succeed and develop passions of their own like I did in high school,” she wrote in her application.
Crome of Topeka, Kansas, says yearbook in high school made a difference in her life. “It helped me understand the larger picture and prepare me for the world after high school.” Besides majoring in English and journalism education, Crome has been on the staff of ESU’s student-run newspaper, The Bulletin. She served as managing editor last year when the staff received the 2018 “Above and Beyond” award from the Kansas Sunshine Coalition for Open Government, for an investigative story about a student’s allegations of misconduct against a professor. In her letter of recommendation, Kristy Dekat, MJE, wrote, “If her performance in my courses are any indication of how she will perform as a journalism teacher, Allie will be a positive addition to the scholastic journalism community.”
Candace Perkins Bowen, MJE, JEA past president, chairs this scholarship committee. Those who selected the recipients this year were Susan Tantillo, MJE, past JEA board member and adjunct university journalism instructor, and former recipient of the award Maggie Cogar, MJE, professional instructor and student media adviser at Ashland University.
Founded in 1924, JEA supports free and responsible scholastic journalism by providing resources and educational opportunities, by promoting professionalism, by encouraging and rewarding student excellence and teacher achievement, and by fostering an atmosphere which encompasses diversity yet builds unity. It is headquartered at Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas.