Ohio University Students Receive
Blackburn-Spencer Awards
Contact: Linda Daniels, (740) 593-4027
ATHENS, Ohio (July 31, 2000) -- The Ohio University Office of Multicultural Programs recently announced that 16 students have received Blackburn-Spencer Scholarship or Achievement Awards in recognition of their outstanding academic performance and contributions to the community.
The five students who earned the Blackburn-Spencer Scholarship will receive $1,600 toward their tuition and fees in the coming school year. Those students are Adonis Bolden of Mansfield, Ohio; Monica Hobbs of Solon, Ohio; Helana Neal of West Chester, Ohio; Larry Seward of Cincinnati; and Chiarra Thompson of Fairfield, Ohio.
Eleven Ohio University students earned an Achievement Award, each totaling $300. They include Mikaela Allen of Spartanburg, S.C.; Beverly Budde of Defiance, Ohio; Mary Cliett of Cincinnati; Shawndell Dawson of Garfield Heights, Ohio; Jemila Fairley of West Chester, Ohio; Kendall Frenche of Riverdale, Md.; Vanessa Jones of Painesville, Ohio; Armana Milbry of Akron; Stephanie Siek of Berea, Ohio; Dionne Wright of Chesapeake, Va.; and Shana Yates of Cleveland Heights, Ohio.
Blackburn-Spencer Scholarship applicants must have a grade-point average of at least 3.0, while Achievement Award recipients need a 2.5 GPA in order to qualify. The students submitted brief autobiographies that included reasons for applying for the awards, family background, highlights from extracurricular activities and career aspirations. Two letters of recommendation also were required.
More than 150 Ohio University students have benefitted from the scholarships and awards since 1980. The Blackburn-Spencer Scholarship and Achievement Awards are named in honor of Martha Jane Hunley Blackburn, the first African-American female graduate of Ohio University, and Donald A. Spencer, the first African-American chair of the Ohio University Board of Trustees.
