By Madelaine Church | OBSERVER Correspondent
The Sacramento Press Club hosted its annual luncheon to celebrate and award scholarships to 11 journalists on Thursday, May 23. The event took place inside the State Building and Construction Trades Council on I Street downtown.
What Are The Sacramento Press Scholarships?
The Sacramento Press Club Scholarships aim to provide financial assistance to help recipients finish their college degrees and succeed in their journalistic careers.
In 1974 The Sacramento Press Club began the program with a single $1,000 scholarship in honor of a political editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, Earl “Squire” Behrens.
Their scholarship program evolved and has since given over $500,000 to more than 150 people. This year, The Sacramento Press Club awarded 11 scholarships totaling $59,000, setting a record for their organization.
Alexi Koseff, president of the Sacramento Press Club, says the money for scholarships is raised through donations, membership fees and ticket sales from events. Koseff, who attended the luncheon on Thursday, felt inspired.
“We hope we can play a smart part in launching the next part into their careers… It’s inspiring to see what they do down the line and how we can help them,” Koseff said.
The Honorees
These awards celebrate the outstanding career achievements and commitment to journalism of its recipients in the Sacramento region. Each scholarship, named in honor of a notable journalist, ranged in amount from $5,000 to $8,000.
The honorees this year were: Sammy Roth, Amy Chance, Larry Lee (The Lee Family), George Skelton, Viviana Páez, K.W. Lee, Jack Ohman, and Karl Grubaugh.
According to the Sacramento Press Club, they also have three scholarships permanently named for Nereida Skelton, Dan Walters, and Jerry Gillam.
The Recipients
Veronica Catlin received the prestigious $8,000 Sammy Roth Scholarship, and Lorraine Barron earned the $6,000 Amy Chance Scholarship. Catlin and Barron attend Sacramento State University and study journalism.
First gen Chico State student Milca Elvira Chacon was honored with the $5,000 Viviana Páez Scholarship. Siany Harts, a Sacramento State journalism student, received the $5,000 Karl Grubaugh Scholarship.
Dylan Jaekel was awarded the $5,000 Jerry Gillam Scholarship, and UC Berkeley grad journalism student Hannah Johansson received $5,000 from the Jack Ohman Scholarship. UC Berkeley journalism student Izzie Kim was chosen to receive the K.W. Lee Scholarship which awarded her $5,000. The Neredia Skelton Scholarship was given to Long Beach State student Acsah Lemma who was awarded $5,000.
Sac State journalism student Maureen Ojiambo received the $5,000 Lee Family Scholarship. Sac City student Emma Richman was chosen to receive the $5,000 George Skelton Scholarship. Lastly, Nathan Uebelhoer was given the Dan Walters Scholarship which was awarded with $5,000.
Barron was over the moon when her professor Molly Dugan informed her that she was a recipient of a Sacramento Press Scholarship. She is in her last year attending Sac State and couldn’t believe she won the second highest scholarship.
“I sobbed when I heard the news, I was not expecting [to win],” Barron said. “I was honored that [the judges] saw my work and believed in me.”
Harts, who is in her fourth year attending Sac State, said her friend Tony Rodriguez encouraged her to apply. When Harts was told she won a scholarship, she was overjoyed.
“It was really nerve wracking when I applied,” Harts said. “It felt really rewarding in the end.”
Members of the Sacramento Press Club, including professional journalists, academic professionals, and scholarship sponsors, judged and selected the finalists.
Robin Epley is a board member, and secretary for The Sacramento Press Club. Back in 2010, Epiley won a $4,000 scholarship herself, while she was studying journalism and English literature at Chico State. She encourages future applicants to let their personalities shine through.
“Give us something that shows us your character and the things you’re interested in reporting on,” Epley said. “Show us who you are.”
Joyce Terhaar is a board member and was also a co-chair for the scholarships who judged applicants. Terhaar recommends getting more experience in different mediums of reporting and to be grounded in their ethics.
“The values of the industry don’t go away as everything else changes. Students have to be aware of those [ethics] and be committed to them,” Terhaar said.
Finalists were selected in mid-April and invited for in-person interviews later that month.
“I look forward to seeing where they will be in a couple of years, because they all have bright futures ahead of them,” Koseff said.