Samford University Offers Journalism Scholarships to Entering Freshmen

Samford University's Department of Journalism and Mass Communication will award partial scholarships to as many as eight freshmen who enroll in the fall of 2014. Application deadline is March 1. Each scholarship is worth $1,800 per year.

Scholarships will be awarded based on ACT scores, high school grades, volunteer work and participation in media-related clubs. They can be renewed each year that the student maintains a 3.5 or better grade point average and is involved with Samford student media.

"These scholarships can provide $7,200 in financial assistance during a student's time at Samford," said Samford JMC chair Dr. Bernie Ankney. "This can help students receive an outstanding education in journalism and mass communication at a reasonable cost."

Samford offers programs in print and broadcast journalism, public relations and advertising. The JMC department also houses an interdisciplinary film production minor and offers courses in sports media, social media, church media and photojournalism. Samford journalism students regularly win awards for their work, and graduate to be highly competitive in the job market.

"Samford communication graduates work for some of the top magazines, newspapers, television stations, and public relations and advertising firms in the nation," said Ankney. "This scholarship can be a great step toward a bright and rewarding future in journalism and mass communication careers."

For more information and a scholarship application, call Ankney at (205) 726-2948 or email him at rnankney@samford.edu. Applications are also available at http://howard.samford.edu/jmc/content.aspx?id=2147490241.

Samford is consistently ranked in the top tier of its peer group by U.S. News & World Report. With about 4,900 undergraduate and graduate students, it is Alabama's largest private university. The university offers undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees in eight schools: arts, arts and sciences business, divinity, education, law, nursing and pharmacy.

Source: Samford

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Northeastern Ranked Among Most Ethnically Diverse Universities

CHICAGO - In its annual publication of "Best Colleges," U.S. News & World Report announced this week that Northeastern Illinois University is one of the most ethnically diverse universities in the nation. Northeastern has held this distinction since 1997, the first year U.S. News & World Report established this category in tis "Best Colleges" rankings.

The data for the diversity rankings were drawn from each institution's 2012-2013 enrollment numbers. According to U.S. News & World Report, the rankings factored in the proportion of minority students-excluding international students-and the overall mix of groups in each institution's student body. The groups forming the basis for the calculations were African-American (non-Hispanic), Hispanic, American Indian, Asian-American, Pacific Islander, White (non-Hispanic) and multiracial.

Northeastern's ethnic diversity reflects the urban environment of Chicago. More than 50 languages are spoken as a first language by Northeastern students.

The largest minority group of students at Northeastern is Latino, and the school is the only four-year public university in the Midwest federally designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. The 2012 entering freshman class was 52 percent Hispanic.

Sharon Hahs, president of Northeastern Illinois University, said, "The diversity of our community transcends not only what we do, but how we do it. We welcome, accept, respect and embrace our differences because we value learning from others. We support divergent perspectives and expect our community to voice differing views of history, politics and world events-that is how we add value to our educational experiences and grow as individuals."

About Northeastern Illinois University

Northeastern Illinois University is a fully accredited public university serving more than 11,000 full and part-time undergraduate and graduate students in the Chicago metropolitan area. NEIU engages its diverse campus community in a rich environment of learning, teaching and scholarship. The University offers more than 80 academic programs in the arts, sciences, education and business. Newsweek magazine has named Northeastern Illinois University the sixth best investment among all universities in the nation and number one in Illinois. The University also is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the most diverse universities in the United States and is federally designated as a Hispanic Serving Institution.

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Source: Neiu

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Georgia State University Sets Records for Diversity and Size of Freshman Class

Georgia State University this fall has welcomed the largest and most diverse freshman class in its history.

At more than 3,200, the class has grown by 6 percent from last year. The class set records for the number of Hispanic, Asian American and African American students enrolled. The academic preparation of the group also improved, with the average high school grade-point average of the entering students rising to 3.4.

The overall number of freshman applications increased by 9 percent, to more than 13,000, with applications coming from around the world. Hispanic first-year enrollment grew by 22 percent, African American 4 percent and Asian American 10 percent over last year. Previous records for freshman, African American, Asian American and Hispanic enrollment were set last fall.

The university's overall enrollment also set a record this fall, surpassing last fall's record enrollment of 32,092 on Sept. 4 with 32,374 students registered for classes as of Sept. 4. Georgia State students represent 150 counties in Georgia, all 50 states and more than 150 different nations. Newly represented in the student body this year are students from Gabon, Libya, Oman, Timor and five other countries.

Georgia State continues to be recognized as one of the most diverse universities in the nation. In its 2014 "America's Best Colleges " edition, U.S. News & World Report magazine ranked Georgia State 12th among the country's most diverse institutions. The university ranked 13th last year.

Georgia State also tied for 14th place with universities such as Carnegie Mellon and Tulane among 23 top "up and coming" national universities ranked by U.S. News & World Report. The ranking is based on assessments by college leaders across the nation. The university's J. Mack Robinson College of Business moved from 56th last year to 47th in the magazine's ranking of undergraduate business programs.

"Georgia State is increasingly a destination of choice for high achieving students of all backgrounds," said Vice Provost Timothy Renick. "Despite a decrease in the number of graduating high school seniors in Georgia this past year, Georgia State saw its applications for the freshman class increase by more than a thousand."

Georgia State's strategic focus on student retention and its ground-breaking initiatives for increasing graduation rates also have been receiving national attention. Georgia State is one of only a handful of universities nationally to use predictive analytics to daily track the progress of every student.

Earlier this year, the institution was named one of six universities highlighted as models of national higher education reform by the New America Foundation. The foundation cited Georgia State as a "Next Generation University" for its rapid increases in graduation rates and its ability to hold down costs.

"Innovations such as our approach to advising have led to a 21-point increase in our graduation rates over the past decade-one of the most dramatic increases in the nation," Renick said.

Source: Gsu

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