The School of Media and Journalism at Kent State announced the launch of the Mandy Jenkins Memorial Scholarship to help support student leaders in key Student Media newsroom positions. This scholarship honors the legacy of Mandy Jenkins, who graduated from Kent State’s School of Media and Journalism. In 2003, Jenkins co-founded Fusion Magazine, Kent State’s student-run LGBTQ+ magazine and a Student Media partner publication.
In Februrary, Jenkins, 42, died of cancer after a four-year battle. To honor Jenkins and carry on her legacy, her husband, Ben Fischer, and their families and friends created the Mandy Jenkins Memorial Scholarship.
Twenty years ago, giving voice to members of the LGBTQ+ community was not high on many people’s priority lists, Kent Stater Professor Emerita Barbara Hipsman Springer said in a recent story about Jenkins posted on the MDJ website. “(Jenkins) … made sure people who needed to have a voice were treated with respect. And she’s always done that,” Hipsman said.
After leaving Kent State, Jenkins continued on to work as a journalist and newsroom leader for more than 20 years.
The Jenkins scholarship will support a Kent State student working in a Student Media newsroom leadership role.
Jenkins believed that journalism could not be what it is without the working and middle class in the field, according to a recent MDJ story. She always wanted to help someone in need so they could spend more time in the newsroom and in return become a better journalist.
To learn more about Jenkins, what her scholarship will provide, or to make a donation, visit this link here.
To read Jenkins obituary in the Zanesville Times Recorder, click here.
To learn more about Jenkins and her legacy, click here.