Call for entries: 2021 student communication awards
William & Mary annually recognizes student journalism with one scholarship and one award. They are centered on excellence in student journalism and participation in publication activities at William & Mary. Complete descriptions are below; a monetary prize is associated with each.
University Communications is now accepting submissions for the Rex Smith Scholarship and the W. Wilford Kale, Jr. Journalism Award. Deadline for entries is 6 p.m. on March 25, 2021. Applicants may apply for one or both awards, and must be full-time students. If applying for both, one application will suffice and please make that clear in a cover letter. Entries will be reviewed by a selection committee comprised of at least three members of the University Communications staff. Winners will be notified and included when university-wide student awards are announced in April.
Entries may be submitted via email to Claudette Brooks at cbrooks@wm.edu, and will not be accepted by USPS mail this year due to COVID-19 restrictions and remote work. Applications must include three examples of your journalism related work as well as a brief summary of both your media involvement while at the university and what you have gained from that experience.
Samples must come from student publications at W&M that are part of the publications council. Work done for an office or department at the university as part of an internship is not eligible.
The Rex Smith Scholarship
This scholarship was established in 1960 by friends of Rex Smith, an alumnus of William & Mary and longtime writer and editor for the Associated Press. The earnings from the endowment are presented annually to a student who participates in publication activities at the university.
Wilford Kale, Jr. Journalism Award
This award was established to honor a student who has shown excellence in journalistic writing at William & Mary. The university has given this award since 1979 following its endowment by W. Wilford Kale, Jr., an alumnus of William & Mary, who for many years was a reporter with the Richmond-Times Dispatch and the head of the local Williamsburg Bureau.