SONIA TSURUOKA is the winner of the first MEWS Scholarship. The Montclair High School senior, who is the co-editor-in-chief of both the award-winning Mountaineer newspaper and the Phoenix Art and Literary magazine, as well as opinions editor of the Scoop Daily blog, plans to study writing at Johns Hopkins and hopes for a career as an international correspondent.
Sonia epitomizes the ideals of the $1500 award, established to honor a graduating senior who’s shown a dedication to and an interest in a career in the fields of writing, editing, and/or literature. Sonia is also involved in Model UN, the Debate Team, and tutoring kids in writing. Teachers and administrators called her one of the “unsung heroes” of Montclair High.
Thanks to NANCY STAR and FILIP BONDY, who worked with me to develop the award, interview the seven wonderful candidates, and ultimately choose Sonia as the winner. And thanks too to all the MEWSies who contributed an impressive $1500 for the scholarship.
The full list of contributors (though I’m not counting the pennies and $20 bills thrown anonymously into the collection jar at the MEWS party):
BARI ADELMAN
LAURIE & FRANK ALBANESE
LAUREN ANDERSON
GLORIA AVERBUCH
LESLIE BRODY
ALICE ELLIOTT DARK & LARRY DARK
JESSICA DeKONINCK
LOUISE DeSALVO
RITA DiMATTEO
DEBORAH DUNN
BRUCE FRANK & SUSAN WEINBERG
DOROTHEA BENTON FRANK
NANCY GERBER
RON HOLLANDER
TONI MARTIN
JOHN & PATTI PAINE
LISA ROSENBERG
KEN & WENDY SCHUMAN
PAULA SPAN
NANCY STAR
NANCY WILLIAMS
Please, if I’ve forgotten anybody, let me know. Thank you!
The first MEWS Scholarship will be award this Thursday night, June 3, at Montclair High. The award, for $1500, will be given to a graduating Montclair High School student who’s evidenced an interest in and commitment to a career in writing and/or editing.
Thank you to my fellow MEWSies NANCY STAR, author most recently of the novel Carpool Diem, and FILIP BONDY, sportswriter for The Daily News, for help organizing the scholarship, interviewing the seven excellent candidates nominated by the MHS English Department, and helping to select the winner.
And thank you too to all the MEWSies who donated the $1500 for the award. I’ll publish a full list of donors later this week when we announce the winner.
We’re very excited about the seven nominees for the first MEWS Scholarship, which will be given to a Montclair High student who’s demonstrated a passion for writing, journalism, and/or literature. The group includes poets and political journalists, newspaper editors and bloggers. Nancy Star, Filip Bondy and I will be interviewing the kids over the next few days, looking at their writing, and making what I’m sure will be an extremely difficult decision.
Thank you so much to all of you who’ve contributed to the fund. This is a LAST CALL for donations. Please make out your tax-deductible checks to Montclair High School, with MEWS Scholarship in the subject line, and send them to Pam Satran, 64 Myrtle Ave, Montclair, NJ 07042. All funds have to be in by Monday so please contribute now! Thanks.
The first MEWS scholarship fund is over $800 and we want to get it up to $1000, so consider this an 11th hour solicitation for funds. The money will go to a graduating Montclair High School kid with an interest in and talent for writing and/or editing. Plus this gives MEWS a higher purpose, which many of you have long claimed to want. So please send your contribution with a check made out to Montclair High School, with MEWS Scholarship in the subject line to Pam Satran, 64 Myrtle Ave, Montclair, NJ 07042.
MEWSie LISA DALE writes:
I just wanted to pass along this opportunity that I heard about through Writer’s Relief!
Writer’s Relief, an author’s submission service (est. 1994) in Hackensack, announces the First Annual Peter K. Hixson Memorial Scholarship For Creative Writers. Three writers in the genres of novels, short stories/personal essays, and poetry will be awarded two rounds of Writer’s Relief services (valued at $500 per winner).
In accordance with Writer’s Relief submission services, Writer’s Relief will compose cover/query letters, individually print and address letters, create mailing labels, and target the winners’ work to the best-suited literary agents or editors. Applications will be accepted April 1 through 23. There is no fee to apply.
For more information please visit http://www.writersrelief.com/peter-k-hixson-writing-scholarship.aspx.
