???Call her Beyonc?? Rhodes-Carter.
Beyonc?? has announced the first four winners of her annual scholarship.
The Formation Scholars Award, which was established by the singer in April to celebrate the one year anniversary of her 2016 visual album Lemonade, comes in the form of a $US25,000 cheque awarded to a student from each of the program's four partner universities: Berklee College of Music, Parsons School of Design, as well as historically black colleges, Howard University and Spelman College.
Recipients can be female incoming, undergraduate or postgraduate students. However, they are required to be studying creative arts, music, literature or African-American Studies.
The winners for the US 2017/2018 academic year are: Sadiya Ramos (a second-year dance student at Berklee), Avery Youngblood (a second-year graphic design student at Parsons School of Design), Maya Rogers (a graduate music therapy student at Howard University, who decided upon her course of study after suffering a traumatic brain injury in 2013), and Bria Paige (a third-year English major at Spelman College).
Students applying for the scholarship had to maintain a 3.5 grade point (distinction) average and write an essay on how the message of Lemonade had inspired them in their studies.Congratulations to the winners of Beyonc??'s #FormationScholars Award for the 2017-2018 academic year!!! ????https://t.co/RAJnsGsiNE pic.twitter.com/jdFCtEDHZG??? BEYONC?? LEGION (@Bey_Legion) June 15, 2017
In a statement released by Spelman College, Paige said Lemonade guided her decision to pursue a doctorate in Black feminist theory.
"Lemonade inspired my Mellon research proposal, ultimately fuelling my desire to pursue doctoral studies centred on Black feminist thought and contribute to the evolvement of diverse scholarship within academia," she said.
"Experiencing Beyonc?? blur the lines between the personal and political and influence culture worldwide, while championing Black women and our experience, empowers me to discover effective and culturally sound ways to see myself within the world and my academic future."
Fairfax Media
