ISSUED: 13 October 2020
MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Owens
SHEPHERDSTOWN, — The Shepherd University Foundation announces the creation of a new scholarship award in support of political science majors at Shepherd University. Established through a generous gift from the GOPAC Education Fund, the scholarship will support two students each year for a minimum of four years. The first awards will be made in the 2020-2021 academic year.
The GOPAC Education Fund Scholarship supports students studying how to advance the free enterprise system, offer nonprofit solutions to social issues, foster innovation and social entrepreneurship, and analyze how government policies impact both the free market and the nonprofit sector. Recipients will be selected by a scholarship committee established through the Bonnie and Bill Stubblefield Institute for Civil and Political Communications, with a preference given to students pursuing a concentration in political communications. The concentration is new to Shepherd’s curriculum and makes the university one of only eight college institutions in the nation to offer a de facto undergraduate degree in political communications.
The GOPAC Education Fund is a nonprofit organization affiliated with GOPAC, based in Washington, D.C. The organization serves as the Republican Party’s center for educating and electing a new generation of Republican leaders.
“President Mary J.C. Hendrix is constantly seeking to assist students as Shepherd trains the next generation of leaders and model citizens,” said David Avella, GOPAC chairman. “It was an easy decision by the GOPAC Education Fund to create two scholarships given the strong political science program, the newly created political communications degree, and the involvement of the Stubblefield Institute.”
“The Stubblefield Institute is thrilled by the generosity of the GOPAC Education Fund,” said David Welch, director of the Stubblefield Institute. “To date, it is our largest scholarship investment and we intend for it to be helpful for students who choose to major in political science with the political communications concentration that we’ve developed.”
Current and incoming students may learn more about the scholarship requirements and how to apply by contacting Dr. Matthew J. Kushin, the Stubblefield Institute’s senior fellow for communications, scholarships, and student engagement, at mkushin@shepherd.edu.
The Stubblefield Institute offers students and the public an advanced platform for the study of political communications amid a national political culture of divided ideology and partisan divisiveness. Governed by a bipartisan board of advisers, the institute is strictly nonpartisan and does not take public positions on policy, issues, or candidates.
To learn more about creating a named fund through the Shepherd University Foundation, contact Monica Lingenfelter, Shepherd University Foundation, P.O. Box 5000, Shepherdstown, WV, 25443-5000, 304-876-5397, mlingenf@shepherd.edu, or visit https://shepherduniversityfoundation.org.
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