FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – September 3, 2019

Press contact: Ben Jackson, [email protected]

#NoRA Announces New Scholarships for Gun Violence Survivors and Art Activists

#NoRA today announced two new scholarships to be awarded for the 2020-2021 academic year.

The Jessi Ghawi Memorial Scholarship is a one-time $5,000 merit-based scholarship awarded to two United States graduating high school seniors or currently enrolled non-graduating college students who are survivors of gun violence or who have lost an immediate family member to gun violence including suicide by gun.

Named in honor of Jessi Ghawi—a young woman who lost her life in the 2012 Aurora, Colorado theater shooting—this award recognizes the importance of educating those students whose lives have been disrupted by preventable gun violence in America. The scholarship’s award committee is chaired by Jessi’s mother Sandy Phillips of Survivors Empowered and includes members of #NoRA and the Newtown Action Alliance.

The #NoRA Excellence in Art Activism Scholarship is a one-time $5,000 scholarship awarded to two graduating High School Seniors or students currently enrolled in baccalaureate programs who use art to engage in gun violence prevention. Scholarship committee members include actor-activists Alyssa Milano and Tara Strong and artist Bradley Theodore.

“Nothing changes the culture like art,” said #NoRA co-founder Alyssa Milano. “Educating and recognizing art activism will pay dividends in this critical fight for generations.”

Students who wish to apply for these scholarships should visit www.NoRANow.org and click on the “Scholarships” menu. Both awards have an application deadline of December 31, 2019.

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