2025 Inez Kaiser Graduate Students of Color Award Call (due May 30, 2025)
Nominations for the Inez Kaiser Graduate Students of Color Awards are being accepted by the AEJMC Public Relations Division (PRD) and the Mass Communication and Society Division (MCSD) through May 30, 2025. The award honors Inez Kaiser, the first African-American woman to belong to PRSA and to head a public relations agency with national clients. Inez Kaiser & Associates was the first African-American female-owned PR agency with national clients. The Kaiser Awards are co-sponsored by PRD and MCSD.
The total amount of each award is $1,000. Two award recipients will receive funding intended to cover one-year memberships to AEJMC and the PRD or MCSD with additional funding that could be used toward research costs or conference travel (such as AEJMC Midwinter, AEJMC SE Colloquium, or the 2025 Annual Conference). The expectation is that the awardee will attend one of these conferences; the conference registration fee will be waived. If interested, they may also take advantage of the PRD mentorship program and be assigned a faculty mentor.
Eligible students of color must be enrolled in graduate study in a communication, mass communication, or public relations program and intend to pursue a career as a public relations/mass communication educator. Students who are finishing their degrees in 2025 are also eligible (including those who have already defended or ABD students). The awards seek to encourage these students' academic career aspirations, and, in turn, their involvement broadens the diversity within the PRD and MCSD, AEJMC, and the mass communication and public relations professions.
Preference will be given to applicants who are:
Nomination process:
Required:
Deadline:
The deadline for nominations and materials is May 30, 2025.
Please contact Inez Kaiser Awards committee chairs Nur Uysal nur.uysal@depaul.edu and Juan Liu juanliu@towson.edu more information or questions.