wfn.org | UMCom announces recipients of religious journalism awards

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

April 21, 1999 News media contact: Linda Green*(615)742-5470*Nashville,
Tenn.  10-71B{213}

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) -- Three students have been named by United
Methodist Communications (UMCom) to receive the agency's annual awards for
study in religious journalism.

The awards - one for undergraduate study and the other for graduate work -
are for the 1999-2000 academic year.

Religious journalism includes news writing in the secular and church media,
and news writing for church institutions, said Wil Bane, a staff executive
at UMCom.  

A $6,000 Stoody-West Fellowship for graduate study in religious journalism
has been given to Kelly Noelle Crow, who has been accepted by Columbia
University's Graduate School of Journalism in New York. She hopes to be an
editor of a lively newsmagazine or a quality or literary publication "that
keeps God in the forefront while still informing and inspiring busy readers
nationwide: a Time or Harper's for the godly." 

The fellowship honors the Rev. Arthur West, Lebanon, Ohio, and the late
Ralph Stoody, who were staff executives at United Methodist Communications
or one of its predecessor agencies.

"Again this year, we received applications from many qualified and promising
students," Bane said. "It is the hope of the selection committee that these
modest graduate and undergraduate grants encourage students to pursue a
career in religious journalism, a field that is growing due to demands from
secular newspapers covering religious issues."

Crow, a member of Church on the Rock, Oklahoma City, said accuracy, fairness
and objectivity in religious journalism should be coupled with a Christian
perspective or a "God's-eye view of the world." 

She affirmed the role of the media as a champion of the people and a
watchdog of government, but added, "A higher truth exists that should not be
overshadowed by the media's so-called pursuit of truth."  

The undergraduate scholarships are awarded to Christine Rose Morente of
Carson, Calif., and Feoshia Qunette Henderson of Mt. Sterling, Ky. They are
the recipients of the Leonard M. Perryman Communications Scholarship, given
to ethnic minority students in the United States who plan careers in
religious journalism. The scholarship honors Leonard M. Perryman, a
journalist for the United Methodist Church for more than 30 years, who died
in 1983.

Morente, a Catholic, will receive $2,500. She is a junior English and
journalism major at Chapman University, Orange, Calif. After undergraduate
study, she plans to earn a master's degree in religion. 

"As a student who wants to pursue a career in religious journalism, I want
to make sure that the concept of religion in newspapers is taken seriously
because religion is, in fact, interwoven in our society and has been for
centuries." Morente said. 

Henderson, a member of Bethesda Church in Mt. Sterling, Ky., will receive
$1,250 to help complete her studies at Eastern Kentucky University in
Richmond, Ky. Her goal is to work on a magazine staff,  either as a religion
writer at a secular publication or a reporter at a Christian publication.

For information on 2000-2001 scholarships, contact: Fellowship Committee,
United Methodist Communications, Public Media Division, P.O. Box 320,
Nashville, TN 37202-0320. E-mail: Scholarships@umcom.umc.org. Phone: Jackie
Vaughan at (615) 742-5140.

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United Methodist News Service
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newsdesk@umcom.umc.org
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