Portfolio Contents

The portfolio submission for the Ottawa University 1st Generation Scholarship must contain the following items:
Application for Admission
High School Transcripts
ACT or SAT test scores
Letter of Recommendation from High School Guidance Counselor (see details on next page)
Essay (see details below)
2 Scholarly Articles and summarization of the articles (see details below)

ESSAY TOPIC

Write and submit a 2-3 page essay. The essay is to be double spaced. At the top of the essay, include your name, your
high school, and the date. The topic for the paper is:
Describe the world you come from and tell us how your world and those in it i.e. your family,
community or school, favorite teacher or counselor have shaped your dreams and aspirations.

ESSAY OUTLINE

Within the essay, be sure to include:

An introduction (1-2 paragraphs)
o The introduction should include your name, age, the city or town you are from, the school you attend,
what activities you are involved within your community/school, and any other relevant information you
feel will help to describe who you are.
A body (2-3 paragraphs)
o The body should further describe the world you come from and how it has shaped you. Is there someone
or something in your life who/which has made you who you are today? Why was this person so
influential in your life?
o Do you have goals and dreams you hope to achieve because of past experiences you have had? If so,
describe the drive to achieve these and where the drive comes from?
Conclusion (1-2 paragraphs)
o How will earning a college degree from Ottawa University help you to achieve your aspirations, goals, and
dreams?
o What will earning a college degree mean to your family and, most importantly, YOU?

SCHOLARLY ARTICLE

The day of the competition we will be investigating the social issue of impactful media. Because the media is such
an important part of our lives (internet, films, television, radio, newspapers), we often take for granted the power
it has. In the early 20th century, a man named Joseph Pulitzer engaged in a type of news reporting called Yellow
Journalism. In order to sell more newspapers, he focused on sensational stories (Murders! Crimes! Scandals!) at the
expense of information about events directly affecting the daily lives of citizens.
In the 1960s and 70s a new age of reporting emerged. People began to stress the value of telling new stories
about everyone: black, white, men, women, poor, rich. In the 1980s, this culminated in a movement called Citizen
Journalism. Reporting could be done by all people because everyone had an important story to tell.
In 2015, many argue that we have entered a second age of Yellow Journalism. With 24-hour
news cycles and thousands of sketchy websites, our information looks and feels much different

Portfolio Contents
than it did even ten years ago. Others argue that the age of media is getting better and better. The average citizen can
now communicate news from anywhereeven conducting social movements from their own phone (via Twitter,
Instagram and Facebook).
For the competition, we would like you to find two (2) scholarly articles that relate to this topic. These sources can
be found using your library, online databases such as EbscoHost, Lexis Nexis, CQ Researcher your school may have
access to. Use your resources (Librarians, Teachers, Counselors) to find these.

SCHOLARLY ARTICLE DETAILS

Once youve identified two (2) articles pertaining to the topic, write one or two paragraphs completing the bullets
below:
Summarize the article What issue does the article address? What is the authors stance regarding the issue?
Do you agree/disagree with the authors position?
What are your thoughts regarding the article? What stood out to you?
The articles, in their entirety, as well as your summary paragraphs need to be included in the 1st Generation
Scholarship Portfolio you will be submitting. The information youve provided will be used the day of the
competition, by not only you, but by all students participating.

RECOMMENDATION LETTER DETAILS

This letter needs to be written by your High School Guidance Counselor and emailed or mailed directly to Ottawa
University. See submission details below.

RECOMMENDATION LETTER OUTLINE

When requesting your letter of recommendation, be sure to ask your counselor to include:
Why you are deserving of a 1st Generation Scholarship and would benefit from earning a college degree.
Verification that you are a 1st generation student (neither parent has completed a college degree).

SUBMISSION DETAILS

Submit your portfolio in one of the following four ways:

Email it to your Ottawa University Enrollment Advisor or Jessica Homolka (jessica.homolka@ottawa.edu)

Hand it to your Ottawa University Enrollment Advisor
Bring it to the Office of Admissions at Ottawa University (Ottawa, Kansas)
Mail it to:
Ottawa University
1st Generation Scholarship
1001 South Cedar Street, #17
Ottawa, KS 66067

Completed portfolios must be postmarked or provided to the OU Office of Admissions by Friday, March 6, 2015.

NEXT STEPS

Details and a schedule for the 1st Generation Scholarship Competition will be provided to those
individuals invited to participate in the competition. We encourage guidance counselors,
teachers and/or parents to attend the on-campus competition as well.