Walker Guevara Wins Prestigious OPC Foundation Award

Michael Grinfeld Magazine Journalism Faculty

New York (March 1, 2005) -- Marina Walker Guevara, a graduate student at the Missouri School of Journalism, was recently awarded a $2,000 Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholarship at the Foundation's annual Scholarship Luncheon held at the Yale Club in New York City.

Marina Walker Guevara accepts a $2,000 Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholarship at the Foundation's annual Scholarship Luncheon in New York City.

Walker Guevara was among 12 selected by a panel of leading journalists from a pool of more than 175 applicants from 60 different colleges and universities. Her essay described the problem of lead poisoning, especially among children, in La Oroya, Peru, where the town's leading employer is also America's largest producer of lead.

Walker Guevara won the Emanuel R. Freedman Scholarship, named for the former foreign editor of the New York Times. She received the award from his son, Eric Freedman, a professor of law at Hofstra University. Her thesis advisor, Michael Jonathan Grinfeld, an associate professor of journalism at the School, also attended the luncheon.

"In making its award, the OPC recognized Marina's creativity, courage and passion for journalism," Grinfeld said. "With intense curiosity moderated by respect for the dignity of her subjects, Marina's stories offer profound insights into the complexities of human struggles."

David Schlesinger, global managing editor of Reuters, was the guest speaker.

The prestigious OPC Foundation Scholarships recognize and support journalism students who aspire to become foreign correspondents.