Cecelia Smith-Schoenwalder of Tallahassee, Florida, a junior at Washington and Lee University, has been awarded a 2014 Barbara L. Frye Scholarship from the Florida Capitol Press Corps. The scholarship is awarded to aspiring journalists.
Each year, the Press Corps presents $2,000 scholarships to college students and graduating high school seniors planning to pursue a career in reporting and writing. Students who attended high school in Florida or are enrolled at a Florida college or university are eligible to apply. This year’s 12 winners represent students from five different universities and one high school.
Money for the scholarships is raised by the Press Corps members through the “(Sometimes) Annual Capitol Press Skits.” The event pokes fun at politicians and how policy is made at the Florida state capitol.
Barbara L. Frye was the Tallahassee bureau chief for United Press International for 38 years until she died of cancer in 1982. The first woman to work full time in the Florida Capitol Press Corps, Frye was elected to the Florida Women’s Hall of Fame in 1984. She was a member of the inaugural class of the Florida Press Association Hall of Fame in 1990.
Smith-Schoenwalder, who is majoring in journalism and minoring in environmental studies, is the news editor for the Ring-tum Phi and oversees a news staff of 13 writers during the fall 2014. She is the head videographer for W&L’s Mock Convention, a national recognized student exercise in political analysis and research. She is a member of Kappa Delta sorority and a music show host for WLUR 91.5 FM, W&L’s radio station.
She was head camera operator for the Rockbridge Report, a local news website and television broadcast for the Rockbridge county area. She was an intern at Tallahassee Democrat during the summer 2014 and Tallahassee Magazine intern during the summer 2013.
Smith-Schoenwalder was awarded the Robert de Maria Intern Scholarship in 2014, a scholarship awarded by W&L’s journalism department.
About her award, Smith-Schoenwalder said, “To receive a scholarship dedicated to such a strong journalist who was so clearly passionate about her job is an honor. Her dedication to journalism and her achievements as a woman in a traditionally male field are reason for motivation in aspiring journalists everywhere.”
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