Beyoncé Announces Winners for the Formation Scholarship
Four ladies from colleges across America will be getting in formation thanks to Queen Bey. Yesterday (June 15), Beyoncé announced the lucky winners of The Formation Scholars Award for the 2017-2018 academic year.
Back in April, Bey announced the scholarship program through her BeyGOOD initiative in celebration of the one-year release of her critically acclaimed visual album LEMONADE. Not long after the announcement of the scholarship, former First Lady Michelle Obama shared her thoughts about the exciting news – she tweeted, “Always inspired by your powerful contributions @Beyonce. You are a role model for us all. Thank you for investing in our girls.”
The scholarship was eligible for current and incoming female undergraduate and graduate students at Berklee College of Music, including students who are enrolled at the college’s campuses in Boston and Valencia, Spain, Berklee online and Boston Conservatory at Berklee. Eligible schools also included Parsons School of Design at The New School in New York City, Howard University in Washington, DC, and Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia.
Established to support and inspire young ladies who are creative, conscious, and are not afraid to push the limit, the Formation Scholarship is eligible for students who study creative arts, music, literature, and African-American studies. Applicants must maintain a 3.5 GPA or above and submit a short essay sharing how LEMONADE inspired their educational goals – as the statement reads.
Per statement, the winners are:
Sadiya Ramos: Sophomore Berklee College of Music
Sadiya is studying dance at Boston Conservatory at Berklee. Originally from Suffern, New York, she began dancing at the age of six under the guidance of Arthur Mitchell at the Dance Theatre of Harlem. Ramos worked with François Perron at the French Academie of Ballet as a teenager, where she acquired the instruction needed to develop her individual style and improve her performance skills.
Avery Youngblood: Second-Year Student Parsons School of Design
Avery Youngblood is a recent Stanford University graduate, Class of 2016 and an undergraduate student in the AAS (Associates) Graphic Design program at Parsons School of Design at The New School, Class of 2018. As an undergraduate at Stanford she studied Linguistics and Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity. Avery discovered that it was possible to translate her creative curiosity for design by focusing on language and the social interaction that takes place in our multicultural society, and the variety of platforms we use to connect with one another.
Maya Rogers: Graduate Student Howard University
Maya Rogers is a songwriter and vocalist who believes in the power that music has to heal, connect us with one another, and help us understand ourselves more deeply. Maya has returned to school to study music therapy after recovering from a traumatic brain injury in 2013. She describes her recovery as the most frightening and fascinating time of her life, and music played a large role in her regaining the ability to read, write, play music, and sing.
Bria Paige: Junior Spelman College
Bria Paige is a rising junior English major at Spelman College from Jackson, Mississippi. At Spelman, Bria is invested in her academics as she maintains membership in the Ethel Waddell Githii Honors Program, Alpha Lambda Delta honor society, and is a Dean’s List scholar. In addition, Bria holds various leadership positions, including Spelman Student Government Association (SSGA) Secretary of Academic Affairs and co-President of the English Club.
Congrats ladies!
Photo Credit: Beyonce/Website
