Inquirer and AboitizPower Executives along with their newly named scholars | Photo Courtesy: AboitizPower CSR
Third-year Communication student Jia Enad is one of three students selected to receive a scholarship from the Inquirer and AboitizPower.
As a scholar, Enad will receive a grant of up to P200,000 covering stipend, book, Wi-Fi or communication allowances, as well as board and lodging expenses. She will also have a chance to work for the Inquirer after College.
Enad is the first scholar in the program outside of the National Capital Region.
“I hope more students like me, especially from far-flung areas, would be encouraged to pursue journalism and see it more than just something we do for competitions,” said Enad in an Inquirer interview.
Joining Enad as scholarship recipients are Julienne Reyes and Rafael Quiling from the University of the Philippines Diliman.
Around 150 students applied for the scholarship, with the pool eventually narrowed down to seven finalists.
AboitizPower Vice President for Corporate Affairs Suiee Suarez said the company’s support for the scholarship program is in line with its advocacy for better access to the truth.
“We seek to foster objective, constructive conversations that fuel progress by surfacing facts over misconceptions,” Suarez said.
The first batch of Inquirer-AboitizPower scholars saw two recipients, Lau Bacia and Jaemie Talingdan, graduate with Latin honors from UP Diliman this year before eventually gaining employment with the Inquirer. Meanwhile, fellow scholarship recipient André Esguerra received the Best Thesis Award from the same university.
The Inquirer Journalism Scholarship Program was launched in 1993 and has since selected students from UP Los Baños, the University of Santo Tomas, Ateneo de Manila University, and the University of the East.
AboitizPower is the program’s first corporate partner.
Scholars are required to maintain grades of at least 1.75 and demonstrate a keen interest in journalism as a craft and career. The financial capacity of the candidate’s family is also taken into consideration.
CCAD warmly congratulates Jia Enad on this achievement.
-With a report from Aboitiz Power CSR and Inquirer