Scholarships and Awards

Overview

Each year, the English Department distributes nearly two dozen scholarships and awards recognizing excellence in undergraduate and graduate student writing. Submissions for our 2025 scholarships and awards are due by Tuesday, April 1.

Review the eligibility criteria and what type of writing sample is required for each of our scholarships and awards below. Students may apply to as many scholarships and awards as they are eligible for. Scholarship applications should be submitted through the University's scholarship application system, Scholarship Universe, while award applications should be submitted through the Department's forms (read "How to Apply for Scholarships" and "How to Apply for Awards" for more information). Scholarships will be applied directly to student accounts during the 2025-2026 academic year; awards will be paid via check during the current academic year.

Do not include your name or contact information on your writing sample(s). Our scholarships and awards are judged anonymously.

If you have any questions about the process, email the Graduate Coordinator at grdstudy@pdx.edu.

How to Apply for Scholarships

Step 1: Navigate to "English - 25/26" application in Scholarship Universe

Note that graduating students are not eligible for scholarships, as funds will be disbursed during the 2025-2026 academic year.

To apply for English Department scholarships, students must use the University's scholarship application system, Scholarship Universe. Applications should be submitted through the "English - 25/26" application in Scholarship Universe, which will appear on the "Application" page after you've answered all the necessary prompts on the "Questions" page as long as you're eligible (see table below) for at least one scholarship.

For more information on Scholarship Universe, including how to set up your account, find scholarships, and submit your applications, visit Student Finance's website.

Step 2: Upload writing samples and/or respond to prompts

If applying to a scholarship that requires a writing sample (all but the Ooligan Diversity Scholarship), upload your work on the "Writing Samples" tab of the application.

For Creative Writing scholarships, including the Tom Bates Scholarships, Roger Hocking Memorial Scholarship, Marilyn Folkestad Scholarship, and Shelley Reece Scholarship, upload a sample of your fiction, nonfiction, or poetry writing.
For the Deeanne Westbrook Memorial Scholarship and/or the Katya Amato Scholarship, upload a scholarly or critical essay.

If applying for the Ooligan Diversity Scholarship, respond to the following prompts on the "Ooligan Essays" tab of the application. Consider underrepresented groups and how you can contribute to the diverse voices in the publishing world as you draft your answers.

Describe your educational and long-term career goals and the difference you intend to make in your field. Please elaborate on how your college education will help you achieve these goals and share supporting evidence that illustrates your determination to achieve these goals. (500 word maximum)
Write a brief statement that expresses how you work within an environment that welcomes and serves individuals of diverse race, gender, ethnicity, culture, age, sexual orientation, religion, political viewpoint, military background, national origin, familial status, or disability. Include examples that have impacted your life or education. (500 word maximum)

Scholarship	Amount	Eligibility	Required Materials	Deadline
Ooligan Diversity Scholarship	$1,000	Graduate (Master's in Book Publishing students only)	Responses to the prompts on the Ooligan Essays tab of the Scholarship Universe application	04/01
Deeanne Westbrook Memorial Scholarship	$1,000	Undergraduate and Graduate (English majors and MA in English students only)	Scholarly or critical essay written in English (ENG) course	04/01
Katya Amato Scholarship	$5,000	Undergraduate (Juniors and seniors only)	Scholarly or critical essay written in 300- or 400-level literature course	04/01
Shelley Reece Scholarship	$1,000	Undergraduate and Graduate	Poetry portfolio	04/01
Marilyn Folkestad Scholarship	$1,000	Undergraduate and Graduate	Creative writing portfolio	04/01
Tom Bates Scholarship	$2,000	Graduate (MFA in Creative Writing students only)	Creative writing portfolio	04/01
Roger Hocking Memorial Scholarship	$3,500	Graduate (MFA in Creative Writing students only)	Creative writing portfolio	04/01

How to Apply for Awards

To apply for English Department awards, students must use the Department's submission forms. For more details, see table below.

Award	Amount	Eligibility	Required Materials	Deadline	Submission Form
Duncan Carter Writing Award	$500	Undergraduate	Essay written in a composition course (e.g. WR 323)	04/01	English Department Awards Application
Frank Andrew and Helen Clarke Memorial Award	$100	Undergraduate	Scholarly or critical essay written in English (ENG), or Writing (WR) course	04/01
Katya Amato Award	$5,000	Undergraduate (Juniors and seniors only)	Scholarly or critical essay written in 300- or 400-level literature course	04/01
Philip Ford Graduate Award	$120	Graduate	Scholarly or critical essay written in English (ENG) course	04/01
Tom Doulis Graduate Fiction Writing Award	$250	Graduate	Piece of fiction written in Writing (WR) course	04/01
Academy of American Poets Award	$100	Undergraduate and Graduate	Up to three poems	04/01
Tom and Phyllis Burnam Fction Award	$1,250	Undergraduate and Graduate	Piece of fiction written in Writing (WR) course	04/01
Tom and Phyllis Burnam Nonfiction Award	$1,250	Undergraduate and Graduate	Piece of nonfiction written in Writing (WR) course	04/01
Tom and Phyllis Burnam Poetry Award	$1,250	Undergraduate and Graduate	Up to three poems written in Writing (WR) course	04/01
Nina Mae Kellogg Award	$1,000	Undergraduate (by nomination)	Work written in an English (ENG) or Writing (WR) course	04/01	Faculty nominator will provide link
Lawrence H. Vinis Award	$100	Undergraduate (by nomination)	Essay written in ENG 300 or WR 301	04/01	Faculty nominator will provide link
Dennis Stovall First Edition Award	$500	Graduate (Master's in Book Publishing students only)	Graduation portfolio	04/01	Email portfolio to grdstudy@pdx.edu
Technical and Professional Writing Graduate Award	$500	Graduate (Master's in Technical and Professional Writing students only)	Graduation portfolio	05/01 (note later deadline)	Email portfolio to grdstudy@pdx.edu

Payment

All scholarship funds are disbursed through Student Financial Services and applied directly to student accounts during the upcoming academic year. Scholarship funds are not considered taxable income.

All award funds are disbursed via check during the current academic year. Award funds are considered taxable income.

Scholarship Descriptions

Apply for scholarships via Scholarship Universe.

Ooligan Diversity Scholarship

Eligibility: Graduate (Master's in Book Publishing students only)
Amount: $1,000
Additional Materials: Responses to the prompts found on the Ooligan Essays tab of the Scholarship Universe application

Deeanne Westbrook Memorial Scholarship

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate (English majors and MA in English students only)
Amount: $1,000
Additional Materials: Scholarly or critical essay written in English (ENG) course

Katya Amato Scholarship

Eligibility: Undergraduate (Juniors and seniors only)
Amount: $5,000
Additional Materials: Scholarly or critical essay written in 300- or 400-level literature course

Shelley Reece Scholarship

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate
Type: Creative Writing (Poetry)
Amount: $1,000
Additional Materials: A portfolio containing representative samples of work in the genre of poetry (20 manuscript pages or less).

The Shelley Reece Scholarship in poetry is given to an undergraduate or graduate student interested in pursuing a career in the field of writing. The recipient must have completed a minimum of one year of coursework at PSU and will be selected for achievement, interest, and talent in the field of poetry writing, as well as demonstrated financial need.

Marilyn Folkestad Scholarship

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate
Type: Creative Writing
Amount: $1,000
Additional Materials: A portfolio containing a representative sample of your writing (20 manuscript pages or less) in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry.

The Marilyn Folkestad Scholarship is awarded to one undergraduate student and one graduate student who has returned to university study after a break, and who wishes to pursue a career in literature or creative writing. Candidates are required to demonstrate academic promise and writing talent.

Tom Bates Scholarship

Eligibility: Graduate (MFA in Creative Writing students only)
Type: Creative Writing
Amount: $2,000
Additional Materials: A portfolio containing a representative sample of your writing (20 manuscript pages or less) in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry.

Roger Hocking Memorial Scholarship

Eligibility: Graduate (MFA in Creative Writing students only)
Type: Creative Writing (Nonfiction)
Amount: $3,500
Additional Materials: A portfolio containing a representative sample of your writing (20 manuscript pages or less) in nonfiction.

Award Descriptions

Apply for the below awards through the English Department's Awards Application.

Duncan Carter Writing Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate
Type: Scholarly or Critical Essay
Amount: $500

The Duncan Carter Writing Scholarship will be awarded to an undergraduate student for the most outstanding piece of writing in a composition class (including WR 200, 211, 222, 300, 320, 323, 324, and 400).

Frank Andrew Clarke and Helen Clarke Memorial Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate
Type: Scholarly or Critical Essay
Amount: $100

The Frank Andrew Clarke and Helen Clarke Memorial Scholarship is an undergraduate award for a scholarly or critical essay of excellence completed as a regular course assignment in an English (ENG), Writing (WR), or Writing Intensive Course (WIC).

Katya Amato Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate (Juniors and seniors only)
Amount: $5,000
Additional Materials: Scholarly or critical essay written in 300- or 400-level literature course

The Katya Amato Award is given for the best essay written in a 300- or 400-level literature course taken at PSU or a previous institution.

Philip Ford Graduate Award

Eligibility: Graduate
Type: Scholarly or Critical Essay
Amount: $120

The Philip Ford Graduate Award honors the best piece of original scholarship or criticism written for graduate credit in an English course (designated by “ENG”).

Tom Doulis Graduate Fiction Writing Award

Eligibility: Graduate
Type: Creative Writing (Fiction)
Amount: $250

The Tom Doulis Graduate Fiction Writing Scholarship is given for a work of fiction by a student enrolled in a graduate-level fiction writing course (designated by “WR”).

Academy of American Poets Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate
Type: Creative Writing (Poetry)
Amount: $100, one-year membership to the Academy, and applicants under 23 years of age are considered for the Aliki Perroti and Seth Frank Most Promising Young Poet Award.

The Academy of American Poets Award is presented for the best poem or group of poems in any theme or style (up to 3 poems). Winning poems may be selected for publication by the academy, a national organization.

Tom and Phyllis Burnam Fiction Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate
Type: Creative Writing (Fiction)
Amount: $1,250

The Tom and Phyllis Burnam Fiction Scholarship is given to one undergraduate student and one graduate student for a piece of fiction prose written in a writing class (designated by "WR").

Tom and Phyllis Burnam Nonfiction Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate
Type: Creative Writing (Nonfiction)
Amount: $1,250

The Tom and Phyllis Burnam Nonfiction Scholarship is given to one undergraduate student and one graduate student for a piece of nonfiction prose written in a writing class (designated by "WR").

Tom and Phyllis Burnam Poetry Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate or Graduate
Type: Creative Writing (Poetry)
Amount: $1,250

The Tom and Phyllis Burnam Poetry Scholarship is given to one undergraduate student and one graduate student for a piece of poetry written in a writing class (designated by "WR"). Up to three poems in one combined document may be submitted, no more than 20 pages.

Award Descriptions (cont.)

Apply for the below awards by following the listed special submission instructions.

Nina Mae Kellogg Awards

Eligibility: Undergraduate (by nomination)
Amount: $1,000
Special Submission Instructions: Nominating faculty will provide link.

The Nina Mae Kellogg Awards recognize two outstanding undergraduate students. They will be presented at the annual Kellogg Lecture, which is held each fall. Invitations to compete for the awards are issued by English department faculty nomination. Nominated students should submit 5 to 15 pages of sample written work from English or Writing courses you have taken at PSU.

Lawrence H. Vinis Award

Eligibility: Undergraduate (by nomination)
Amount: $100
Special Submission Instructions: Nominating faculty will provide link.

Three Lawrence H. Vinis Awards will be awarded each year for the best student essays written in ENG 300 or WR 301. Faculty teaching ENG 300 and WR 301 will nominate essays for the award.

Dennis Stovall First Edition Award

Eligibility: Graduate (Master's in Book Publishing students only)
Type: Portfolio
Amount: $500
Special Submission Instructions: Submit by email to grdstudy@pdx.edu with subject line "Dennis Stovall First Edition Award Submission." Submissions should take the form of a portfolio containing an example of your best work in each of two different areas of the publishing process: editorial, design, production, marketing, sales, and management. Any work completed for a Publishing class (including Publishing Studio, Publishing Lab, and any By Arrangement) since last year’s Kellogg Awards deadline is eligible. If you are unable to submit your portfolio as an electronic attachment (e.g. you designed a pop-up book), you should deliver a physical copy of your entire submission to the English Department office (FMH 310).

The Dennis Stovall First Edition Award is given to the graduate student who best exemplifies the publishing program’s mission.

Technical and Professional Writing Graduate Award

Eligibility: Graduates from the fall, winter or spring of the current academic year (Master's in Technical and Professional Writing only)
Type: Portfolio
Amount: $500
Special Submission Instructions: This award recognizes the best graduation portfolio for a student in the Master's in Technical and Professional Writing program. Students who have applied for graduation in the spring term, or who graduated in the preceding fall or winter terms, should send a link to their final graduation portfolio to grdstudy@pdx.edu by May 1. The subject line for the email should be "Technical and Professional Writing Best Graduate Portfolio Award Submission," and the email should contain the student's full name, PSU ID number and term of graduation.