$1000 prize for a Penn senior
who writes non-fiction and/or
is involved in editing
ANNOUNCING THE NORA MAGID MENTORSHIP PRIZE
Nora Magid was an extraordinarily gifted and giving teacher of non-fiction writing at Penn from the mid-1970s until her death in 1991. During those years, she nurtured an amazing number of students, who came to be known as "Nora-ites." Many went on to earn some of the top jobs in magazine and newspaper writing and editing, and have won most of print journalism's most prestigious awards. Others have had similarly successful careers in the arts, business, law and medicine.
While Nora was a brilliant teacher, she is best remembered by her students for the way she encouraged them to network with one another after finishing her course in Advanced Expository Writing. Perhaps her most lasting legacy is how many of those former students have worked together over the years, helping each other professionally and personally, and truly remaining part of the network she created.
We can no longer experience Nora in her classroom (and it was an experience.) But we want Nora's spirit of intense collegiality to continue for gifted Penn students planning careers in non-fiction writing and editing. So we are announcing a new annual award in her memory: The Nora Magid Mentorship Prize.
The Nora Magid Mentorship Prize is a component scholarship fund of The Philadelphia Foundation, a community foundation serving southeastern Pennsylvania. Donations to the fund are completely tax deductible.
The prize will be given each year to a senior at the University of Pennsylvania who shows exceptional ability and promise in non-fiction writing and editing, and who would benefit most from combined mentorship of Nora's network of former students and their colleagues. The prize is $1000, which is to be used as a stipend for transportation, lodging and meals as the student travels to New York, Washington and elsewhere to develop professional contacts at magazines, newspapers and publishing houses. Based on a plan submitted with the prize application, the winner will visit those Nora-ites and their colleagues who seem most able to assist in the student's professional goals. In this way, the student will get the kind of quality mentorship during the last semester of college that Nora's students received when she was alive. After graduating and taking a first job, the prize-winner will be expected to become part of the network of Nora-ites and help other graduating seniors.
While the prize is for students planning to pursue non-fiction writing and editing, the network of Nora-ites includes many talented people outside of Nora's chosen field. The prize-winner is free to include them in his/her "mentorship proposal," which should describe your career goals, your strengths and weaknesses as a writer, and how you would hope to benefit from the mentorship network created by Nora Magid. Along with the proposal--which should be no longer than two typewritten pages--you must submit two journalistic non-fiction writing samples (please do not send fiction or poetry, or academic writing), a resume, and a recommendation (sealed) from the Penn faculty member most familiar with your writing.
Submissions may be made starting November 1, 2003 and must be postmarked not later than December 1, 2003. The winner will be notified by February 1, 2004.
On November 1, a complete list of those Nora-ites who have agreed to participate in mentorship will be posted on www.NoraPrize.com.
Please send submissions to:
Nora Magid Mentorship Prize
c/o Eliot Kaplan
Hearst Magazines
1345 Avenue of the Americas 10th Floor
New York, NY 10019
If you have any questions, please contact:
Stephen Fried Author, Adjunct Professor, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
215-592-1662
sf@stephenfried.com
Eliot Kaplan
Editorial Talent Director, Hearst Magazines
212-649-2064
ekaplan@hearst.com
Scholarship Advisory Committee
Miriam Arond, editor-in-chief, Child Magazine
Barri Bernstein, executive director, Tennessee Bar Foundation
David Borgenicht, owner and publisher, Quirk Books, author
Sandee Brawarsky, author, book columnist, The Jewish Week
Jean Sherman Chatzky, author, financial columnist, Money Magazine & Today Show
Lisa DePaulo, freelance magazine writer
Stefan Fatsis, author, sports columnist, Wall Street Journal & National Public Radio
Loren Feldman, editorial director, Inc. magazine
John Prendergast, editor-in-chief, Pennsylvania Gazette
Joel Siegel, senior editor and writer, ABC's World News Tonight
Kevin Vaughan, chief operating officer, Free Library of Philadelphia
The official registration and financial information of The Philadelphia Foundation may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling toll-free, within Pennsylvania, 1-800-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement