Hawaii Filipino Chronicle offers journalism scholarship — DEADLINE EXTENDED

HONOLULU — The Hawaii Filipino Chronicle is offering a new $2,500 scholarship for future journalists to commemorate its 25th year of publication. Application deadline has been extended to August 10, 2019.

The inaugural award will be presented at the Chronicle’s “silver celebration gala and scholarship awards banquet” in November 2019 to one deserving student who is a full-time, college-level sophomore, junior or first semester senior of Filipino heritage who graduated from a high school in Hawaii and is majoring in journalism/mass communications at a four-year public or private university within the state.

Filipinos and Filipino-Americans represent the fastest growing ethnic group in Hawaii and make up 23 percent of the state’s population. They also make up the largest Pacific Islander cultural community in America but are underrepresented in the fields of journalism/mass communications.

“We need good journalists who are the ‘eyes and ears of the community,’ and the Chronicle believes that we must build a pool of journalists in the future to safeguard our democracy and create a group that reports ‘checks and balances’ actions happening in the government and around us,” said Chronicle Editor Chona Montesines-Sonido.

“With good reporting in place by well-trained journalists, we can secure a fair, informative and steady flow of news in our community and around the world. It is important that we support these students who are preparing for their future in the media field,” she said.

Eligibility

Journalism students are encouraged to apply for this specific scholarship. To be eligible, applicants must:

• Be of Filipino descent (at least 25%)
• Be a citizen, national or legal permanent resident of the United States •
• Be a graduate from a high school in Hawaii •
• Be enrolled full-time (at least 12 credits undergraduate) as a sophomore, junior or first semester senior at an accredited four-year public or private college/university in Hawaii
• Be a declared major in journalism/mass communications or media-related field
• Have a minimum cumulative (not term) 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale
• Serve in extra-curricular activities to show leadership potential, teamwork abilities, community service and well-roundedness
• Demonstrate financial need

Application process

Scholarship information/instruction guide, application and recommendation forms may be downloaded from the Chronicle website at www.thefilipinochronicle.com. Applicants are required to submit a PDF packet, which includes a recent copy of their college transcript, references, writing samples, 1,000-word essay and proof of financial need.

Applications are accepted UNTIL AUGUST 10, 2019 after which time, a panel of judges—a combination of educators and media practitioners—will review all completed packets and make the final selections.

The winner only will be notified by the end of May or beginning of June. A profile article announcing that he/she is the recipient of the scholarship will be published in a summer edition of the Chronicle along with his/her photo and essay. The winner will be recognized formally at a scholarship banquet in November.

Applications and donations accepted

Additional application details and updates of the Chronicle’s journalism scholarship program may be found on the newspaper’s website at www.thefilipinochronicle.com. Questions may be addressed to the scholarship committee at [email protected]. Donations are also welcome to help fund, support and sustain the annual journalism scholarship program. To donate, please contact the Chronicle office at [email protected] or call (808) 678-8930.