Scholarship

Howard T. Short and Burdette Augusburger Scholarship Fund:

The fund was established by a $350,000+ bequest from the estate of Burdette Augusburger and and his late partner Howard T. Short to benefit gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered students pursuing post-secondary education at a Central Ohio college or university or Wilmington College in Wilmington, Ohio.

 

2012 Recipients of $6000 scholarships for the 2012-13 academic year.  

Heather Hardin is enrolled at Capital University Law School working toward the degree of Juris Doctorate. She speaks passionately about being both a lesbian and the partner of a transgendered person, and how that drove her to the study of the law. Shane Morgan, the founder of TransOH and one of Heather’s recommenders, noted that Heather has volunteered in numerous capacities for TransOH, often working in difficult situations with difficult people.  Heather co-moderates the TransOH’s partner’s group.  At the CM Grant Leadership Academy, where Heather works as a paraprofessional, she developed an anti-bullying program that was praised by her recommender from the Academy . Heather also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in foreign languages and has lived and worked abroad.

Jordan Kelsey is a Cincinnati resident who is attending Ohio State, majoring in Spanish. Jordan is making a splash at OSU with the “Fine by me” campaign, a grass-roots effort to humorously promote acceptance of LGBT people at OSU. The campaign includes t-shirts, a week of programming activity featuring a TEDx event, a movie screening and a comedy show. Jordan said, “If only one student benefits from Fine By Me, it wil have been totally worth the money, time, and commitment that we have put into it.” Jordan was recommended by the faculty advisor for the “Fine by me” organization and by his supervisor, who is the Banquet Manager at the Blackwell Conference Center, where Jordan works. Both praised Jordan’s leadership, his passion, his hard work and most importantly, his pride in his work.

Nathan Parker is enrolled in the Masters of Public Administration program at OSU. Nathan began his career by working for Teach for American in a middle school in an under-resourced district of Phoenix, Arizona. There, he started a theater program where kids could express themselves outside of the classroom. Nathan’s experience in the classroom created in him a desire to lead education reform, which lead to his enrollment in the MPA program. To stay involved with young people, Nathan now volunteers at Kaleidoscope Youth Center. The Kaleidoscope Drop-in Center Coordinator who recommended Nathan said that he is a great mentor to the young men who visit the Center, and who often have few other resources for support. Nathan interned at the Ohio Department of Education. His recommender from ODE said that Nathan has the potential to make a major impact on the educational arena.

 

2011 recipients of $5,000 individual scholarships are:

Daniel D. Ehrman, who is pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education at The Ohio State University where he is a member of the OSU Men’s Glee Club and participates in the LGBTQ&A Student Association’s GLBT first year cohort program. Dan was described in his recommendations as a student with, “amazing potential,” who is, “admired and respected within his circle of peers.”

Cain Crawley, who is pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in History at Wilmington College; where he works at the Peace Resource Center. He is an inaugural member of Student Activists and Allies for Equality (SAAFE). Cain’s recommendations described him as, “intelligent, committed, responsible, compassionate and personable.”

Margarita Diaz, who is pursuing a Master of Science in Nursing at The Ohio State University, with the goal of becoming a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. She volunteers at health service events as a translator for Spanish-speaking patients. Upon completion of her education, one of her professors believes Diaz’s will contribute to helping children in underserved, Spanish-speaking parts of the world.

2010 recipients of $2,000 individual scholarships are:

Matthew Arnold, a resident of Columbus attending Ohio Dominican University;

Kayden Z. Healy, a resident of Columbus attending The Ohio State University;

Shreeya Keryn Mathew, a resident of Dublin planning to attend The Ohio State University;

Edgardo Medina, a resident of Columbus attending The Ohio State University; and

Vianca Yohn, a resident of Westerville attending Otterbein College.

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The application process for fall 2012 will open in Spring 2012. Please check back in the future for scholarship information.

The Howard T. Short and Burdette Augusburger Scholarship is dedicated to students who have contributed to the GLBT community through strong personal character, leadership and service.

“The Legacy Fund is honored to have been entrusted with this gift that will help inspire the next generation of GLBT leadership in central Ohio,” said Susan White, previous Legacy Fund Co-chair. “The generosity of Howard and Burdette will have a lasting legacy on our community.”

Scholarships are open to gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender students pursuing a post-secondary education at a central Ohio (Franklin and contiguous counties) college or university or Wilmington College in Wilmington, Ohio.  All applicants must have a minimum GPA of 2.75.

This scholarship constitutes one of the largest gifts given to The Legacy Fund of the Columbus Foundation and will make studying at a central Ohio institution of higher education a financial reality for many GLBT students.