Spotlight on TFMA Scholarships 2019

Spotlight on TFMA Scholarships 2019

Jun 21 2019

(How to give to TFMA: https://www.giving.temple.edu/)

In 2018-19 TFMA gave out over 50 scholarships representing a substantial amount of money used to help students who demonstrated skill and potential, as well as need for their expenses.

A hefty percentage of these funds are derived from the support of “Big Bang Theory” actor Kunal Nayyar (TFM ‘06) and his wife Neha Kapur, stemming from their commitment to help theater students at Temple.

Said Nayyar, “I would not have been able to afford to go to grad school if it wasn’t for the generosity of others who had already given back to the school to enable me to have a scholarship...If it wasn’t for that help I got, I wouldn’t be where I am.”

This past school year, four acting students, Dana Liu, Brielle Rivera, Tariq Kanu, and Joy Lynne Pringle Bato were each awarded significant scholarships to help them with the expenses related to their degree in theater performance.  

With another level of awards Nayyar and Kapur supported other Temple theater students with smaller awards including, Andrew Patterson, Raven Clark, Johari Farrar, Sarah McKenzie, Doreen Nguyen, Dajzane’ Meadows -Suanderlin, Luke B. Johnson, Jessica Money, Tyler Lord, Imani Moss, Marissa Emerson, Ashlyn Joseph and Laurence Christopher.

In addition, through Kunal and Neha’s generosity, TFMA students George Mcgriff, Jordan Smith, José Mangual, Satchel Williams, Gracie Hudson, Bryan Lewis, Sopheaktra Theng and Zitian Chen were each awarded travel stipends to audition for graduate schools. And students Abigail Sturgis and Andrew Patterson were given stipends for other related travel.

The time and money has already shown dividends -- 2019 graduate Jordan Smith, for example, will attend the prestigious Grad Acting program at The University of California, San Diego in the Fall.

On the Film & Media Arts side, recent support organized through Teri Cook at Temple’s Accounts Payable office has meant a donation of 20 round-trip plane tickets to Los Angeles for those attending the FMA LA Study Away program (and one to Venice, Italy for a student to attend the Biennale!). This represents an amazing opportunity to cut down on costs for students who want to be a part of the Temple scene in Los Angeles.

A congratulations to all our 2018-19 winners and a reminder to students to look out for ways to apply for these scholarships in the Fall when school starts!

We want to congratulate other winners of TFMA scholarships this year including:

  • The Paul Ryan Hutton Memorial Award - Cassidy Sanders
  • The Alan Kosher Award - Abigail Sturgis
  • The Macarthur-Friedman Graduate Fund - Gabriel Elmore
  • The Benzeie Memorial Fund - Griffin Horn & Side Stage
  • Randall Award - Alexa Joseph & Isabel Robin
  • The Derek Freese Filmmaker Awards  - Brynn Antaran, Angelo Mazza, Eve Siconolfi, Weston Tebbs and Anden Arce-Medina
  • The Gordon Award - Abigail Sturgis & Molly Foy
  • The Weisfeld Award - Sarah McKenzie & Grace Whittemore
  • Grickis Memorial Scholarship Fund - Lindsay Allen
  • The Wachman Award - Jackson Purdy & Cianna M. Castro
  • The Ben & Minnie Lazaroff Award -  Chimene Aniagba, Alex Gosciniak, Robert DelVecchio & Alicia Woods
  • Beatrice Leder Film And Video Production Award - Lamont Nathaniel Gibson, Juliana Concepcion, Theodora Ojugbana & Samantha Tan
  • Motion Picture Scholarship Award - Will Martinko & Sophia You
  • Theater alumni scholarships - Cheyenne Parks & Nina Straface

    (Let us know if we missed anyone!)

 

 

 

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