Jennifer Kuphal Women’s Leadership Award

The purpose of the Jennifer Kuphal Women’s Leadership Award is to empower future women leaders to change the world and honor Jennifer’s memory as a leader and mentor.  To this end, the donors are committed to building a culture that pulls women up to ensure that women receive the necessary support to be confident and achieve their highest potential.

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Award Features

• One (1) $1,000 scholarship will be awarded to one emerging leader grand award winner
• One (1) $500 scholarship will be awarded to one emerging leader runner up
• Scholarships will be accompanied by one (1) mentoring meeting during the academic year

 

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Eligibility and Criteria

• Applicants must be currently enrolled at Michigan State University and able to receive scholarship distribution in the fall term (after the winners are announced and officially contacted).

• Applicants must have completed at least 56 credit hours, and be a major in one of the academic degree programs offered in the College of Social Science.

• Applicants must have a minimum overall/cumulative 3.5 GPA.

• Incomplete or inaccurate applications will not be considered (e.g., missing or un-matched criteria, essay submission less than 500 words in length).

• Award recipients will be required to submit a letter of acceptance and thank you within two weeks of notification in order to receive the award. Letters should be addressed to Kelly Lictawa. The letters will be submitted to and delivered to the donors by Amanda Guinot Talbot, PhD at guinotam@msu.edu.

• Depending on the amount and type of an applicants’ financial aid package, this scholarship may change the aid package. If selected as a scholarship recipient, it is the student’s responsibility to investigate whether the award will adversely affect their financial aid.

 

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Submission Requirements

Submissions are due by 5:00pm EST on November 21st. Three winners will be selected in total. All winners will be required to attend one (1) mentoring meeting to be scheduled during the academic year.

To submit, applicants will need to do the following:  

1. Review the eligibility and criteria and confirm qualification.

2. Write a 500-word essay highlighting excellence in leadership. The essay must be submitted as a Word doc or PDF and address the following prompts:

   1. Reflect on your leadership journey inside and outside of the classroom, highlight one example of exemplary leadership in both contexts.

   2. Describe one aspect of your leadership journey where you feel you could grow with the proper mentorship.

   3. Looking into the future, where do you hope to be? What are your career aspirations, and how will you lead from that position?

   4. Discuss how empowering women leaders through educational programming, scholarships, mentoring, etc. can help to change the word?

3. Current resume/CV and cover letter.
   This document must be submitted as a Word doc or PDF.

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Questions?

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Questions can be directed to Dr. Amanda Guinot Talbot (guinotam@msu.edu).