Sinclair Broadcast Group awarded scholarships to 17 university students to pursue careers in broadcast journalism, digital storytelling, and marketing. Who are they? What schools do they attend? And what are their careers plans?
Sinclair Broadcast Group has awarded scholarships to 17 university students as a part of its annual Diversity Scholarship program.
Having provided more than $250,000 in tuition assistance since 2013, the scholarship program aims to invest in the future of the broadcast industry and help students from diverse backgrounds, who reflect Sinclair’s audiences nationwide, complete their education and pursue careers in broadcast journalism, digital storytelling, and marketing.
This year the program was expanded nationally.
“Through Sinclair’s annual scholarship program, we aim to develop and inspire the next generation of journalists and marketers and continue our commitment to increasing diversity in the broadcast industry to reflect the communities we serve,” says Chris Ripley, Sinclair’s CEO. “We congratulate the 2022 winners and look forward to their future success.”
The annual Sinclair Broadcast Group Diversity Scholarship complements the company’s efforts to bring more diversity to news teams nationwide.
This includes enhanced efforts to recruit skilled and talented employees from historically Black colleges and universities as well as Hispanic serving institutions.
A total of $50,000 was awarded to the following students:
Lauryn Carlton — University of Missouri
Lauryn is working towards her BA in journalism at the University of Missouri. She has been on the Dean’s List since 2020 and has built her skillset while working as a newsroom intern. She describes herself as a convergence journalist, “many of my projects have come in various forms of media, including videos, articles, podcasts/podcast trailers, audiograms, infographics, and even Tik Toks. The medium I have a very special affinity for however, is broadcast.”
Zoe Del Rosario — University of the Incarnate Word
Zoe is a communication arts major at the University of the Incarnate Word, expecting to graduate in May 2023. She serves as the Program Director for UIWtv. She was a Lone Star Emmy Chapter NATAS Student Production Awards Nominee for Best College Sports Story Category and Best Newscast Category in 2021. Zoe’s goal is to grow as a multimedia journalist by having the platform to uncover important stories in her local community.
Shaylee Gibbs — Sterling College
Shaylee attends Sterling College where she majors in writing and editing. She is in the honors program and played women’s soccer. She has had a passion and gift for writing and creating stories since she was just a small child. Shaylee is currently working on writing a novel.
Sedric Granger, Jr. — Ohio University
Sedric currently attends Ohio University in Athens, where he is pursuing a degree in broadcast journalism with a minor in sports management and a certification in podcasting. Ever since Sedric was a freshman in high school, he has been in love with broadcasting whether it be play-by-play or TV news. He is a resident adviser and advocate for Ohio Men of Excellence Network and a Mentor for the Office of Multicultural Success and Retention.
Najla Hollins — Michigan State University
Najla’s initial interest in journalism began early on from being curious about the world, why things happen or why someone is where they are in life. She has a true passion for telling people’s stories. Najla is majoring in journalism and minoring in broadcast journalism and public relations. Her career goals are to become a news anchor and work in TV news.
Azana Holmes — Texas A&M, San Antonio
Azana is an upcoming senior who is majoring in business marketing with a concentration in digital marketing. Azana’s accomplishments include being accepted into the Texas A&M- San Antonio T.E.A.M Mentorship Program in 2022 and holding several marketing internships.
Elise Jawed — Gonzaga University
Elise is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and a minor in broadcast and electronic media studies. Elise is an intern at a local news station and says going to work is her favorite part of the day. Her dream is to work as a producer and on-air personality for a station in the Northwest.
Kaira Low — Biola University
Kaira says: “My mission is to be a liasion, a glue between organizations and underserved and underrepresented communities so that all people, groups feel seen, represented, and valued within the mainstream narrative.” She is a majoring in public relations and strategic communication and a member of Torrey Honors College and Public Relations Students Society of America. Kaira ultimately strives to become a Creative Marketing/PR Director for an organization.
Tairiq Marshall — San Diego State University
Tairiq is majoring in journalism and media studies. He is the vice president of the National Association of Black Journalists SDSU Chapter. Tairiq says, “Upon graduating from San Diego State University and obtaining a BA in journalism, I have long-term career aspirations of writing, reporting, and sportscasting for the National Football League or Major League Baseball.”
Melvin Perry Jr. — University of South Carolina
Melvin’s initial interest in digital media began when he stopped playing sports in high school and instead picked up a camera. He started following his high school sports teams like football, volleyball, and baseball. He has a strong passion for photography and videography. Melvin is majoring in visual communication.
Mecca Thompson — University of Oklahoma
Mecca is a fellow of the Emma Bowen Foundation, majoring in broadcast journalism, with minors in film and media studies. She has gained experience working at The New York Times, Fox Sports and in local broadcast news. Mecca shared that her post-graduate career aspirations include being a reporter for a local news station, and later, becoming an anchor at a local news station.
Victoria Tran — Auburn University
Victoria is a public relations student. She is a Student Ambassador for Canon USA and the communications and marketing assistant for Auburn University Libraries. Victoria said, “these two combined have shown my passion for creative freedom and that I love to create. I get excited about creating and being able to have these jobs. It doesn’t feel like a burden that I have to work, but rather I feel as if it’s a hobby.”
Brooke Ung — Biola University
Brooke is a Business Administration student with a concentration in Marketing. She is a fashion production intern at Small Boutique Fashion Week. This semester she conducted an 80-page research analysis on the fashion retail industry. Brooke said, “My research included 11 professional interviews and 44 customer interviews, which gave me insight into creating a third business by finding a niche in the market.”
Naomi Vanderlip — Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Naomi attends California Polytechnic State University, where she is pursuing a degree in journalism and English. Naomi worked as an intern at Aragon Outlook, The San Francisco Examiner, Mustang News and the local NBC affiliate. She is the student representative at Cal Poly Journalism Diversity Committee and is the Founder and President of Multiracial Students’ Club.
Julia Woock — University of California, Riverside
Julia is working towards her bachelor’s degree in political science, expecting to graduate in 2023. She has already had many professional achievements, including awards from ACP, Society of Professional Journalists, National Magazine Awards (Maggies), Columbia Scholastic Press Association, California College Media Association, SPJ of San Diego, and more.
Evan Wyno — USC Annenberg School of Journalism and Communication
Evan comes from Oregon, with the dream and drive to pursue a career as a news anchor. He currently attends USC Annenberg School of Journalism and Communication and was a published poet and author in The Greenleaf Review in 2020. With Evan’s skills and talents, he intends to shed light on the experiences of working-class families and communities of color. Evan says, “Journalists have the power to create change, and I am passionate about using my voice to make an impact on the world.”
Congrats to the winners! For me, journalism is a very interesting and important sphere. News is a massive part of our lives; honestly, I have no idea how it will be possible to live without journalism. And it’s cool that such interviews with journalism students were conducted. Students are the future, and it’s good to ask for their fresh and unique points of view. I’m a first-year journalism student and want to do everything to give something new to the sphere. And now, I’m working on a paper on how the journalistic sphere can be improved. I got some help from https://edubirdie.com/top-writers because I was stuck with writing one part, but everything is good now. In that paper, I want to analyze existing literature and research and add practical parts. For example, my thoughts about everything and the opinion of other journalistic students of different years. There may be a difference between first-year and fourth-year students’ thoughts.