Two Students Win Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholarships

Columbia, Mo. (Feb. 12, 2003) -- Two master's degree students from the Missouri School of Journalism have been awarded scholarships worth $2,000 by the Overseas Press Club Foundation. Kristy Siegfried and Jason McLure were among 11 journalism students from around the country to be selected from over 200 entries.

The Overseas Press Club (OPC) is the nation's oldest and largest association of journalists engaged in international news. Part of its mission is to help educate a new generation of foreign correspondents to uphold high standards in international news reporting. The scholarships are awarded annually to journalism students aspiring to become foreign correspondents.

Kristy Siegfried's winning essay was adapted from an article she wrote for the Columbia Missourian, the daily community newspaper published by the Missouri School of Journalism. It was based on interviews she conducted with two Columbia residents from Iraq and their feelings about a potential war.

Jason McLure won his scholarship with an essay about the devastating effects of U.S. agricultural subsidies on African village life. He observed these effects first-hand during his two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Niger.

Siegfried and McLure attended the Foundation's Scholarship Luncheon at the Yale Club in New York in January. Dan Rather, anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News, was the guest speaker.