Writing Awards & Scholarships

In addition to the Tom and Stan Wick Poetry Scholarship Awards, the department awards annual student prizes in creative writing, critical writing, and writing in freshman English classes. Competitions are held each year in February for these awards:

• Virginia Perryman Freshman Writing Awards
• Arthur E. Dubois Critical Writing Awards
• Anna Ulen Engelman Creative Writing Award
• Donna Zurava Memorial Award: Best Writing Portfolio

The submission deadline is February 22, 2008. Copies of the rules/author information sheet are available on the bulletin board across from 204 Satterfield Hall.

Scholarships

English majors with an overall GPA of 3.5 or better (or a GPA of 3.75 in English classes) are invited each spring to apply for a number of awards, including the Garnett and Toerne Scholarships, which award up to $1,000 tuition for the following year, and the Steiskal Scholarship, a $500 need-based award. Chair’s Scholarships offer smaller awards. As many as ten undergraduate scholarships are awarded each year. All awards and scholarships are presented at the English Department’s annual Awards Ceremony, held in April each year. For details and Scholarship Applications, please come to the English Undergraduate Studies Center, 204 Satterfield Hall.

Garnett Scholarship

This award honors W. Leslie Garnett, a professor of English at Kent for over 25 years who died in 1992 at age 98. She is remembered as an outstanding classroom teacher and a respected contributor to international education.

Applicants must have sophomore or junior standing and overall GPA of 3.5 (or 3.75 in English courses). Students with an interest in international affairs or education are especially encouraged to apply. Applicants must submit the following:

• Scholarship application
• Letter of application indicating the student’s career goals and how they have been advanced by study of English language and literature
• Copy of official transcript
• Two letters of recommendation (normally from professors in the English Department)

Toerne Scholarships

These scholarships honor Richard Toerne, a professor of English at Kent and faculty member from 1961 to 1984. Six $1,000 awards are given each year.

Applicants should be English majors who have an overall GPA of 3.5 (or 3.75 in English courses) and have taken a minimum of one required course in the major. Applicants must submit the following:

• Scholarship application
• Letter of application indicating the student’s career goals and how they have been advanced by study of English language and literature
• Copy of official transcript
• Two letters of recommendation (normally from professors in the English Department)
  
  

Steiskal Scholarship

This award honors Mildred Steiskal, a 1933 graduate of Kent who returned to the University to complete a master’s degree in 1965. She taught in the Austintown, Ohio, school system for 20 years. After retiring, she was active in the arts community in the Youngstown area.

Steiskal recipients normally qualify for financial aid, as this is a need-based award. Students who have applied for the Garnett or Toerne scholarships will automatically be considered for the Steiskal. Applicants should be English majors who have an overall GPA of 3.5 (or 3.75 in English courses) and have taken a minimum of one required course in the major. Applicants must submit the following:

• Scholarship application
• Letter of application indicating the student’s career goals and how they have been furthered by study of the English language and literature; also include a statement of financial need
• Copy of official transcript
• Two letters of recommendation (normally from professors in the English Department)