On Tuesday, March 9, Chicago poet and author Eve L. Ewing announced a new scholarship for young people on Instagram. The Ewing-Jones Scholarship will support one young person who wants to attend the Leadership Academy at the W.E.B. Du Bois Scholars Institute, which will be hosted at Princeton University.
The W.E.B Du Bois Scholarship Institute is a leadership development organization for young people. According to the institute’s website, it “develops a diverse cadre of leaders and scholars who, through rigorous preparation and nurturance, excel in higher education and professionally.”
Additionally, the program aims to “foster well-rounded young minds and wisdom-loving change agents working to create a more just and human world,” according to its website.
Ewing and her husband, Damon Jones, started the Ewing-Jones scholarship to support one high school student through the Institute. Jones participated in the institute as a high schooler and is currently chair of the institute’s board of directors.
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“We share a commitment to service and fighting for access to the things people in our communities need and deserve in order to be free,” Ewing wrote on her website. “This is a commitment we admire and appreciate about each other and it is a cornerstone of our relationship. When we became engaged to get married, we agreed that rather than honor our love and partnership with a ring, we would like to support a young person in taking the next steps in their life.”
Young people that are interested in applying for the scholarship must meet the following criteria:
* Be a ninth grader enrolled in a high school within the city of Chicago.
* Identify as a person of color and reside in a household with an income of $65,000 or less.
* Maintain at least an overall B average.
* Be available to participate in the full Summer Institute program, which is five weeks long and in summer 2021, will be virtual.
The deadline for applications is April 10. For more information about the Ewing-Jones Scholarship, visit eveewing.com.