Resources and Opportunities

This award assists SFSU Journalism majors with financial need and demonstrated ability to write compelling human-interest stories in the Bay Area. The scholarship is given by a donor to honor former SFSU lecturer faculty and San Francisco Chronicle reporter Torri Minton, who died of cancer in 2004 at age 47. Amount: about $1,000.

This award gives full tuition to full-time students for one semester taking at least one Journalism class during that semester. Otto Bos (B.A., ’70) was a government and politics reporter at The San Diego Union and press secretary for U.S. Sen. and California Gov. Pete Wilson.

This award is offered to Journalism and Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts students. Robert Brown was an NBC News cameraman killed in Guyana in 1978 during a visit to the controversial religious sect called the People’s Temple. Amount: about $1,000.

This award was established in memory of a photographer for the San Francisco Examiner when it was owned by Hearst. Like Bob Brown, Greg Robinson was killed in Guyana in 1978. Applicants must submit a portfolio and completed scholarship form. When available, awards cover tuition (not including fees) in an academic year.

This award was established in memory of a photographer for the San Francisco Examiner when it was owned by Hearst. Like Bob Brown, Robinson was killed in Guyana in 1978. Applicants must submit a portfolio and completed scholarship form. Amount: $500.

This scholarship is awarded to photojournalism students. Stacey Doukas was an SFSU student who died in a car accident. Her family established this scholarship to remember her free spirit and love of life. Amount: about $1,000.

This award honors the memory of John Fang, the late publisher of AsianWeek and the San Francisco Independent, and his sons by providing support, when available, to Journalism majors in good academic standing. Applicants are called upon to make a strong case in favor of diversity in journalism, a major concern of Mr. Fang. Amount: about $1,000.

These small grants are given to students to pursue a reporting investigation. Frank McCulloch was a famed investigative reporter and editor who, in the course of five decades, covered some of the biggest stories that would make history. Students must be enrolled in JOUR 609 during the semester in which they are receiving the scholarship. Amount: about $1,000.

Jason Lloren (B.A., ’92) worked as a journalist for nearly 30 years, most of that time with the San Francisco Examiner and then the San Francisco Chronicle after the papers merged. He held a variety of leadership roles, including national/world news editor, business editor and online producer. To be eligible, you must be enrolled in at least one three-unit Journalism course. Amount: about $1,000.

Alex Kauffman was a junior in the Journalism Department in 2024 when he was the victim of a fatal car accident. He was remembered by his classmates and professors as an energetic, warm, engaged student who aspired to be a broadcast journalist and sought to understand our complex world and help others do the same. Amount: about $2,000.

This Scholarship Fund is named after Richard Cushing (B.A., ’48), who worked for 15 years in the San Francisco bureau of the Associated Press and was one of the first Americans to enter Tokyo when World War II ended. To be eligible, you must be enrolled in a section of JOUR 609: “Newspaper Publication Lab.” Amount: about $1,000.

Pauline Scholten (B.A., ’75) and three generations of her family have attended SFSU. She started her career as a newspaper reporter before transitioning to technical writing for the computer industry.

Photojournalism students can receive up to $5,000 to produce significant journalistic projects that sheds light on marginalized populations. Fran Ortiz was the first faculty member to teach a photojournalism course in the Department of Journalism. He was committed to ensuring our students learn to report from a diversity of perspectives.

Editors work beyond the class credit they receive for their coursework. This fund provides financial support for the editor in chief of Xpress newspaper and Xpress magazine. The fund was started by Robert Hollis, a former editor of the Golden Gator.

Longtime SFSU Journalism faculty member Raul Ramirez was KQED radio’s executive director for news and public affairs and winner of the career achievement award from the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California.  The fund supports an annual award to honor a Journalism student whose work exemplifies the importance of diversity in all journalistic endeavors and in the lives of communities.

The Hearst Journalism Awards Program awards scholarships for outstanding performance in college-level journalism, with matching grants to the students’ schools.

As students in an program accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications, you are encouraged to apply. To submit work for consideration, please email Amber Wehrer at amberw@sfsu.edu. Faculty will review all entries and choose the top two pieces for submission to the contest.

We provide grants of up to $1,000 if you want to travel to cover a story, attend a professional meeting or training opportunity, or purchase documents or supplies needed to pursue a journalistic project. Applications should be submitted by March 1, May 1 or Sept. 15 for consideration by the Student Professional Development Grant Committee. You may apply at other times, and applications will be considered if funding is available.

Guidelines:

1. Applicants must be Journalism majors or minors or Bilingual Spanish Journalism majors or minors currently enrolled at SFSU.
2. All students who get funding from the Student Professional Development Fund should follow up with a deliverable. This could be presentation to a class on what you learned; a brief report to the Journalism Department Student Professional Development Committee; a digital copy of the presentation delivered at a professional meeting; a summary of social media activity (such as live-tweeting relevant commentary) from the event; or a story published by a student or professional media organization.
3. Funds must be expended in accordance with state travel regulations.
4. You may not be reimbursed for mileage or the cost of a rental car unless employed by the University (or appointed as a volunteer) and you meet the SFSU Driver Safety Program requirements.

Please apply via Qualtrics.
For questions, please email Amber Wehrer at amberw@sfsu.edu.

The purpose of the McLeran Microgrant fund is to help Journalism students in their junior or senior year to complete their capstone project. Ralph McLeran and his wife Deborah place a high value on contributing positively to their community through their philanthropy and volunteer work. They wish to support professional development activities for Journalism students to prepare them for careers in media.