The NPPF is grateful for the corporate support of our educational scholarships. Sony Electronics provides a scholarship as well as camera gear to winners. Saramonic provides microphones, Think Tank provides camera bags, and Litra provides lighting kits for our scholarship winners.


GRANTS

Photojournalist Michel du Cille drew praise from colleagues around the globe for his deep moral compass and sense of social justice. His three Pulitzer Prizes are a fitting tribute to the stunning quality of his work. The recipient is selected to pursue visual work for the betterment of humankind in the spirit of du Cille.
The $5,000 Alan Hagman grant is offered annually to facilitate projects ranging from human rights to environmental issues.  A highly valued creative approach to important stories that might otherwise go untold.
A $4,000 annual grant is available to professional and student photojournalists to aid in creating significant projects that make a difference. This grant is funded by a generous donation by Bob and Millie Lynn.

SCHOLARSHIPS

To Apply for Scholarships, go to: https://nppf.org/scholarship-competition/

NPPF scholarships are awarded to encourage those with the talent and dedication to photojournalism who need financial help to continue their studies. These awards are directed toward those studying full-time or returning to college.

The Bob East, Reid Blackburn, Bob Baxter, Kit C. King, and Jimi Lott scholarships are endowed by donations from friends, family, and news organizations.

The Brown/Folwell Storytelling Scholarship is made possible through funding by James and Rebecca Brown, Frank Folwell, and Sherry Ricchiardi.

The Rich Clarkson Founders Scholarship is funded by a generous contribution from Mr. Clarkson.

NEW! The Liane Enkelis Scholarship for Women in Photojournalism in honor of Bettijune and Benedict Kruse, Harvey Weber, and Richard L. Enkelis.

The C. Thomas Hardin and Mary C. Hardin Documentary Photojournalism Scholarship is funded by a generous contribution from the Hardins.

NEW! The Xan Korman Scholarship, established by Xan’s parents, is funded by generous contributions from the family, friends and supporters of Xan and his work.

NEW! The Paul Lester Scholarship is in memory of renowned photojournalism professor and visual ethicist Dr. Paul Martin Lester, who passed away in the Fall of 2023.

Sony’s Photojournalism Scholarship is funded by Sony. In addition, Sony provides cameras to first-time NPPF Scholarship winners.

The G. Gordon Yoder News Video Workshop Grant was funded by a gift from television news pioneer and former NPPF board member G. Gordon Yoder.

NPPF provides funding for the NPPF Still and Multimedia Scholarship, the NPPF TV News Scholarship, and the College Photographer of the Year International awards through donations from NPPA members.

The NPPF Booster Club, comprised of Life NPPA members, has provided significant funding over the years.

The Foundation also supports the Stan Kalish Picture Editing Workshop and the Virtual Video Workshop.

NPPF Scholarships-Blue text links show more detail


Bob Baxter – $2,000

Named for a New Jersey photographer paralyzed in a swimming accident but continued to pursue photojournalism education. Baxter set up this scholarship before his death.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


James Brown / Frank Folwell Storytelling Scholarship – $2,000

The scholarship is open to undergraduate and graduate students studying photojournalism whose portfolio emphasizes storytelling in still pictures or video.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


Reid Blackburn – $2,000

Established by The Columbian newspaper of Vancouver, Wash., where Reid Blackburn, 27, was a photographer until his death. He died in 1980 while on assignment covering the eruption of Mt. St. Helens.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


Rich Clarkson Founders Scholarship – $2,000

Established in 2014 by Rich Clarkson. For 25 years, Rich Clarkson was the director of photography at the Topeka Capital-Journal. He also led the photo and art department at the Denver Posts as Assistant Managing Editor/Graphics and wasTheNationalGeographic Magazine’s Director of Photography in the 1980s.

Clarkson is one of four Founders of the National Press Photographers Foundation, established in 1975. He is also the National Press Photographers Association’s past president.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


Bob East – $2,000

Bob East was a colorful and widely known veteran photographer at The Miami Herald. He died from a surgical accident in 1985 after more than 45 years in the profession. NPPA’s national secretary, he mentored many interns.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


NEW! Liane Enkelis Scholarship for Women in Photojournalism in honor of Bettijune and Benedict Kruse, Harvey Weber, and Richard L. Enkelis. – $2,000

This scholarship is to recognize a woman undergraduate student beginning her pursuit of photojournalism. This scholarship is for a woman aiming for a career in photojournalism whose portfolio demonstrates storytelling in still photography, an interest in explaining the human condition or current cultural developments, and a focus on daily life. The Scholarship is to be awarded to an undergraduate woman still photographer.


C. Thomas Hardin and Mary C. Hardin Documentary Photojournalism Scholarship – $2,000

Established in 2018 by C. Thomas Hardin and Mary C. Hardin. C. Thomas Hardin is the president of the NPPF and a past president of the National Press Photographers Association. As NPPA president in the 1980s, he fostered an annual NPPA-Nikon Documentary Sabbatical Grant.  For almost 15 years, that grant focused on the Changing Face of America, documenting serious issues of the day.

He is the former director of photography at the Courier-Journal in Louisville, Kentucky, where he worked for 30 years. His staff there won Pulitzer prizes and numerous NPPA annual awards. He was also director of photography at The Detroit News before he retired in 1996. He generated a book, “A Voice is Born,” documenting the founding and first 40 years of the NPPA. He has been elected to the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame and has won the NPPA’s Joseph Costa Award and NPPA’s most prestigious honor, the Joseph A. Sprague Award.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students with a focus on documentary photojournalism.


Kit C. King – $2,000

Kit C. King was the Chief Photographer at The Spokesman-Review and Spokane Chronicle. He died in a fishing accident in the Snake River in 1991.

Open only to graduate students.


NEW! Xan Korman – $2,000

Established by Xan’s parents after he was shot and killed in August 2021.  Xan was a 20-year-old college junior whose passion was sports photography.

This is open to undergraduate and graduate students. Preference is given to someone who specializes in sports photography.


Jimi Lott – $2,000

Jimi Lott, a Seattle Times photographer for over 20 years, was known for his keen eye, compassion, and boundless energy. His work focused on the community’s less fortunate, including the homeless and the mentally ill. He died in 2005 at age 52.

Open only to undergraduate students.


Sony’s Photojournalism Scholarship – $2,000

Sony funds this scholarship awards excellence in student photojournalism and.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


Mary Lou Foy Still and Multimedia – $2,000

NPPA members provide support for this scholarship, especially members of the NPPF Booster Club, made up of NPPA life members. The scholarship is for photojournalism students concentrating on still and multimedia.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students.


NPPF TV News – $2,000

NPPA members support this scholarship, especially members of the NPPF Booster Club, comprised of NPPA life members. The scholarship is for television photojournalism or multimedia students specializing in video.

Open only to undergraduate students.


TV Workshop Awards

Advanced Storytelling Workshop Award – $1,000 plus waiver of the registration fee

The Advanced Storytelling Workshop is a hands-on experience where participants will learn from some of the best journalists in the business. The goal is to improve storytelling skills while also looking at how visuals and editing play an essential part in a story. The faculty-to-student ratio is small, allowing for personal attention and one-on-one time with a top-notch group of speakers.

This award is open only to NPPA members who are working professional video photojournalists wishing to attend the NPPA Advanced Storytelling Workshop.

The applicant must be a current NPPA member in good standing and have at least two years of full-time employment as a video photojournalist. Note that this award is NOT intended for beginning video photojournalists but for experienced video photojournalists who have mastered the basics of good video storytelling. Apply here.


Hutchison/Wheeler Advanced Storytelling Workshop Award – $2,000 for the Advanced Storytelling Workshop
CHRIS WHEELER began his career at WTOL-TV in Toledo, Ohio. His life changed when NPPA legend Darrell Barton called to offer a job at KTVY (now KFOR) in Oklahoma City. He next went to work at KARE-11 News in Minneapolis, where he was named the 1987 NPPA Television News Photographer of the Year. After working for several years at KUSA-TV in Denver, he transitioned into producing documentary films, the most notable being the series “How the West Was Lost,” which aired nationally on the Discovery Channel.
SONNY HUTCHISON’s entire career is rooted in photojournalism, with an extensive background in local TV news, including stints at Louisville’s WHAS-TV and KUSA-TV in Denver. He was a producer/director on the thirteen-hour documentary series “How the West Was Lost” for the Discovery Channel. Sonny was a Cinematography Fellow at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and is a proud graduate of the 1975 NPPA Television Newsvideo Workshop.
Chris Wheeler and Sonny Hutchison co-founded two highly successful production companies – Great Divide Pictures and High Noon Entertainment. Together, Chris and Sonny have produced and directed dozens of films for the National Park Service, including projects for Zion National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Shenandoah National Park.
This scholarship is offered to aspiring photojournalists who need financial assistance to attend NPPA’s Advanced Storytelling Workshop.  Sonny Hutchison and Chris Wheeler believe the workshop’s mentoring and professional interactions can profoundly impact a photojournalist’s life. The NPPA’s workshop provides eye-opening experiences giving photojournalists fresh perspective and instilling confidence and skills in visualizing their stories. A great workshop can change you. And your vision can change the world. The award is for people who might not otherwise be able to attend the NPPA Advanced Storytelling Workshop.
Applications to the Hutchison/Wheeler Storytelling Award for the Advanced Storytelling Workshop.  Apply Here

Yoder News Video Workshop – $1,000

NPPA Sprague Award winner G. Gordon Yoder was a combat correspondent-photographer in Korea and a network photojournalist covering news, including the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s–1960s. He designed and manufactured the innovative 16mm Yoder Sound Camera — the standard for TV stations and networks.

This scholarship is open to working TV photojournalists wishing to attend the NPPA News Video Workshop. Candidates must have at least one year of full-time employment at a TV station, network, or cable news operation.

Applications for the Yoder Award to the NPPA News Video Workshop are now open. Apply here.


Hutchison/Wheeler News Video Workshop Award – $2,000 for the News Video Workshop
CHRIS WHEELER began his career at WTOL-TV in Toledo, Ohio. His life changed when NPPA legend Darrell Barton called to offer a job at KTVY (now KFOR) in Oklahoma City. He next went to work at KARE-11 News in Minneapolis, where he was named the 1987 NPPA Television News Photographer of the Year. After working for several years at KUSA-TV in Denver, he transitioned into producing documentary films, the most notable being the series “How the West Was Lost,” which aired nationally on the Discovery Channel.
SONNY HUTCHISON’s entire career is rooted in photojournalism, with an extensive background in local TV news, including stints at Louisville’s WHAS-TV and KUSA-TV in Denver. He was a producer/director on the thirteen-hour documentary series “How the West Was Lost” for the Discovery Channel. Sonny was a Cinematography Fellow at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and is a proud graduate of the 1975 NPPA Television Newsvideo Workshop.
Chris Wheeler and Sonny Hutchison co-founded two highly successful production companies – Great Divide Pictures and High Noon Entertainment. Together, Chris and Sonny have produced and directed dozens of films for the National Park Service, including projects for Zion National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Shenandoah National Park.
This scholarship is offered to aspiring photojournalists who need financial assistance to attend the NPPA News Video Workshop. Sonny Hutchison and Chris Wheeler believe the workshop’s mentoring and professional interactions can profoundly impact a photojournalist’s life. The NPPA’s workshop provides eye-opening experiences giving photojournalists fresh perspective and instilling confidence and skills in visualizing their stories. A great workshop can change you. And your vision can change the world. The award is for people who might not otherwise be able to attend the NPPA News Video Workshop.
Applications to the Hutchison/Wheeler Storytelling Award for the News Video Workshop are now open. Apply here. 

College Photographer of the Year International

This competition, conducted by Kappa Alpha Mu and the University of Missouri School of Journalism, recognizes work by students pursuing a degree. The NPPF Booster Club provides the $1,000 Col. William Lookadoo and the $500 Milton Freier awards.

For rules and entry information for College Photographer of the Year International only:

Jackie Bell
Associate Professor, Photojournalism
Director, College Photographer of the Year
Missouri School of Journalism
University of Missouri
105 Lee Hills Hall
Columbia, MO 65211
office: 573-882-5737