The Sacramento Press Club scholarship program began in 1974 with a single $1,000 scholarship in honor of Earl “Squire” Behrens who had recently retired as political editor for the San Francisco Chronicle. He had been a political reporter for more than 50 years and was recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1970. In 1982, the club added a second scholarship in honor of Kenneth Leake, former editor and publisher of the Woodland Democrat, who died in 1981.
The program grew over the years, singling out college students who showed both journalistic talent and financial need to finish their college degrees. We have given away more than $500,000 to more than 150 people — a significant amount of assistance that has helped many young students on their way to successful journalism careers.
2023 Recipients
Laura Fitzgerald
The $8,000 Sam Stanton Scholarship was awareded to Laura Fitzgerald, a graduate student at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism and an audio enthusiast. Fitzgerald has reported on the city of Oakland’s land back policy efforts, the 2022 UC-wide strike of graduate student workers, the politics of protected bike lanes, and more. Her work has aired on The California Report, KQED, KALW, and KALX. This summer, she will be covering California state politics for CapRadio as a political reporting fellow. Before attending graduate school, Fitzgerald was a legislative staffer in the California State Assembly where she worked on policies pertaining to elections, voting rights, and campaign finance disclosure. A San Diego native, Fitzgerald is a graduate of UC Davis where she studied political science and Spanish.
Kimberley Gomez Santos
The $6,000 Casey Nichols Scholarship was awarded to Kimberly Gomez Santos. She joined the Sacramento State University’s student newspaper, the State Hornet, in spring 2021 as a staff writer focusing on Spanish-language coverage. Gomez Santos was born in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and transferred to Sacramento State from Allan Hancock College in 2019. She is a first-generation college student, living in the United States with a DACA visa. Her ultimate career goal is to become a T.V. news anchor. Gomez Santos plans to use her scholarship money to graduate debt-free, and will be the first member of her family to graduate from college.
Laura De la Garza Garcia
The $5,000 Rich Ibarra Scholarship was awarded to Laura De la Garza Garcia, a first-generation Latina who transferred from San Joaquin Delta College to Sacramento State University in 2019. De la Garza Garcia served as the Spanish editor for her college paper, The State Hornet, and interned with The Sacramento Bee. She is finishing an internship with KCRA news and will be joining the Univision 19 team as a news producer in late May 2023. De la Garza Garcia is also the founder of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists student chapter in the Sacramento/Davis area and was recognized with a first-place award for Social Justice Reporting by the Associated Collegiate Press on her United Farm Workers march broadcast.
Acsah Lemma
The $5,000 Jan Haag Scholarship was awarded to Acsah Lemma, a Sacramento City College student planning on transferring to California State University, Long Beach. She became interested in journalism because she wanted to use writing to help people and shine a light on issues that aren’t being discussed. In the future, she hopes to be a foreign correspondent in either Africa or the Middle East. Having immigrant parents from Ethiopia and being a part of a very culturally diverse community in Sacramento has made her passionate about issues relating to immigration and the struggles of refugees and displaced people.
Carly Moran
The $5,000 John Howard Scholarship was awarded to Carly Moran, a sophomore at Hillsdale College studying politics and journalism. She is the assistant news editor for The Collegian, the oldest college newspaper in Michigan. Carly was born and raised in Folsom and hopes to continue her journalistic work in the Sacramento region after graduation. When not writing for The Collegian, she enjoys freelancing for the Center Square, hiking, horseback riding and rollerskating.
Sonora Slater
The $5,000 Marjie Lundstrom Scholarship was awarded to Sonora Slater, a third-year student at UC Davis studying environmental economics and professional writing. She is currently the campus news editor of The California Aggie, UC Davis’ student newspaper, previously working as a copy editor and a science writer for the paper. She will be taking on the role of editor-in-chief of The Aggie next year. Over the summer, Slater will be a reporting intern for The Sacramento Bee. She is passionate about balanced and community-centric news coverage, and also enjoys writing science stories, features and the occasional editorial about how cool public libraries are.
Gavin Hudson
The $5,000 Nereida Skelton Scholarship was awarded to Gavin Hudson, a native Houstonian who found his passion for journalism and storytelling in Sacramento. Originally holding aspirations to be a film critic, Hudson has found himself immersed in all sections at his student publications. Eager to learn more in the industry, Hudson has developed a passion for investigative journalism and long-form storytelling while studying for his bachelor’s degree in journalism at Sacramento State University.
Nathan Uebelhoer
The $5,000 Sacramento Press Club Scholarship was awarded to Nathan Uebelhoer, who is currently headed into his third year as a journalism student at Sacramento State. A Sacramento native, Uebelhoer grew up in Elk Grove while spending his high school years working in Brazil with his parents. He currently works as a sports reporter for The Sacramento Bee covering high school sports in the area. He also contributes to his school’s student-run radio station KSSU, producing and broadcasting their live sports section.
Hannah Poukish
The $5,000 Sacramento Press Club Scholarship was awarded to Hannah Poukish, a 2017 graduate of Whitman College. Poukish previously interned in CNN’s Documentary Unit and covered politics at the state Capitol for Spectrum News 1. She currently produces a live political show for Spectrum News in Los Angeles. Her experience working in broadcast production has inspired her to strengthen her writing and beat reporting skills. She is looking forward to attending Stanford University’s Master’s in Journalism program this fall, where she can continue to grow into a compassionate, dedicated journalist. In the future, she hopes to cover education stories in Northern California.
Casey Rafter
The $4,000 Dan Walters Scholarship was awarded to Casey Rafter, a Sacramento State student who transferred from Sacramento City College. He served as State Hornet copy editor for a year after spending two semesters as editor-in-chief at the Sac City Express. The latter saw Casey guiding students who published award-winning work remotely through the earliest months of COVID-19. He has also contributed arts and entertainment features for Sacramento News & Review since May 2021, covering the local music and art scene. Through his weekly radio show “Upper Case E” on Sac State’s radio station, KSSU, Casey amplifies the voices of musicians, filmmakers and writers in the Sacramento area.
Cristian Gonzalez
The $4,000 Jerry Gillam Scholarship was awarded to Cristian Gonzalez, a political Science and jouurnalism student at Sacramento State. He has worked as a multimedia and visuals staffer at The State Hornet, and will be the multimedia editor for the fall 2023 semester. Gonzalez has had work published in the Sacramento News & Review covering homelessness and local music. He also won 2nd place for Best Broadcast News Story at the 2023 ACP Spring Conference for a story about sexual assault on campus. Gonzalez looks forward to reviving Stinger Sound Sessions, The State Hornet’s take on Tiny Desk Concert-style music showcases featuring local artists.
2022 Recipients
Molly Burke
The $8,000 Scott Rodd Scholarship was awarded to Molly Burke, a student at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. She is a research aide for Medill’s investigative lab with the Washington Post, where she has helped manage and edit reporting projects surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. Molly grew up in Davis, and some of her favorite reporting assignments have centered around her home region and state. She told judges she loves the Sacramento region so much, she sees herself returning to the area to continue her journalism work as a professional someday.
Emma Hall
The $6,000 Rich Pedroncelli Scholarship was awarded to Emma Hall, a Sacramento State student who transferred from Diablo Valley College. This is her second year winning a Sacramento Press Club scholarship. She served as editor for diversity, equity, and inclusion for her college paper, The State Hornet. She also works for the CalMatters College Journalism Network, where she has reported on the experiences of Native students at tribal colleges. This summer, she will attend Politico’s Journalism Institute and will intern for NPR. Judges were impressed by all the work she has done in the last year and her dedication to improving coverage of marginalized communities.
Elyse Pham
The $5,000 Nereida Skelton Scholarship was awarded to Elyse Pham, a Harvard student from Sacramento who has interned for The Sacramento Bee and NBC News. This is her second year winning a Sacramento Press Club scholarship. The daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, Elyse says she is committed to covering marginalized communities. Journalist and author Michael Pollan, who taught Elyse in a writing workshop, wrote in a letter of recommendation that she has “a voice developed beyond her years.” Judges were impressed by the quality and depth of her work.
Dominique Williams
The $4,000 Dan Walters Scholarship was awarded to Dominique Williams, a Sacramento State student who previously attended San Joaquin Delta Community College. She works as a breaking news intern at The Sacramento Bee and serves as both the approval editor and visuals editor for The State Hornet, her college paper. Judges were impressed by her grit and determination, as well as her interest in covering breaking news.
Madeleine Beck
The $4,000 Jim Stimson Scholarship was awarded to Madeleine Beck, a second-time scholarship winner. She is a graduate student at New York University’s digital storytelling and magazine program. She previously attended Sacramento State, where she worked for The State Hornet. She has also worked for CalMatters College Journalism Network, Salon, the San Francisco Examiner and Comstock’s magazine. Judges were impressed by her enthusiasm and passion for journalism.
Keyshawn Davis
The $4,000 Ginger Rutland Scholarship was awarded to Keyshawn Davis, a student at Sacramento State. Keyshawn was the Diversity, Equity and Identity Editor for the university’s student run newspaper, the State Hornet. A 2021 recipient of the Dan Walters Scholarship, judges continue to see growth in Keyshawn’s journalism skills. Although Keyshawn’s love for sports initially lured him into journalism, Keyshawn said this year he’s had an opportunity to tell more complex, harder news stories. He was the lead author in articles detailing a mass exodus of black faculty at Sacramento State and campus racism. He said he sees himself continuing to do more accountability journalism.
Julietta Bisharyan
The $4,000 Jerry Gilliam scholarship was awarded to Julietta Bisharyan, a student at UC Berkeley. She is currently working with KQED on its investigative reporting into police accountability within California’s prisons. This summer she plans to return to Sacramento to work as a Capitol Bureau intern for the Sacramento Bee. Julietta is interested in multimedia and data-driven investigative reporting. She previously studied at UC Davis, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree. Judges were impressed by her enthusiasm for journalism and her excellent writing skills.
Antonio Rodriguez
The $4,000 Erika Smith Scholarship goes to Antonio Rodriguez. He attends school at Sacramento State, where he has been named editor-in-chief of The State Hornet. Rodriguez says he’s passionate about reporting on communities that aren’t often in the spotlight, including unhoused people and the LGBTQ community. His professor, Sacramento Bee reporter Philip Reese, wrote in his letter of recommendation that Antonio “has a great eye for a compelling news story.” Judges were impressed by his enthusiasm for seeking out tough stories that need to be told.
2021 Recipients
Orlando Mayorquin
The $8,000 Hector Amezcua Scholarship goes to Orlando Mayorquin, a CSU Northridge journalism student well on his way to a successful career. He interned last year with CalMatters, covering poverty and income inequality. This year, he joined the New York Times Student Journalism Institute and has started an internship with the Los Angeles Times. Judges were impressed by his professional work, his wonderful writing and his approach to journalism: “I take to heart that journalism is a public service,” he said.
Sara Nevis
The $6,300 Dale Kasler Scholarship goes to Sacramento State journalism student Sara Nevis, a second-time scholarship winner. A single mom and Sacramento City College transfer, she continued to impress judges as a resourceful, observant, and innovative journalist. Sara discovered a passion for photography after cancer sidelined her from a career as a military air traffic controller, then she developed her writing and multimedia skills. She freelances for the Stockton Record and is the multimedia editor for The State Hornet. This year, she joined the New York Times Student Journalism Institute and will intern for the Sacramento Bee.
Emma Hall
The $5,000 Nereida Skelton Scholarship goes to Emma Hall, a Sacramento State student who transferred from Diablo Valley College. Emma describes herself as “a little too mad at the world to be quiet,” which has driven her toward accountability journalism. She covered the closure of the student vision center for The State Hornet, reporting that usage had actually increased, even though administrators cited decreased usage as the reason for its closure. Judges liked her grit, energy and smarts.
Keyshawn Davis
The $4,000 Dan Walters Scholarship goes to Keyshawn Davis, a Sacramento City College student who is transferring to Sacramento State. Keyshawn’s story is one of tenacity. He’s been the primary financial support for siblings while plugging away at coursework. His love for sports drew him to journalism and the sports editor job at The Express — and then the pandemic shut down sports. He pivoted to features and freelanced for Comstock’s magazine. Judges noted his growth over the last year and said, “He is earning his place in the business.”
Madeleine Beck
The $4,000 Lonnie Wong Scholarship is awarded to Madeleine Beck, who is graduating from Sacramento State and attending NYU’s digital storytelling and magazine graduate program this fall. Judges liked Madeleine’s natural instinct for news, strong reporting and commitment to doing the hard work to make a difference. Her reporting for The State Hornet forced a deadline extension for students to receive parking permit refunds. She has worked for CalMatters College Journalism Network, interned at the San Francisco Examiner and freelanced for Comstock’s.
Elyse Pham
The $4,000 Beth Ruyak Scholarship goes to Elyse Pham, a Harvard student from Sacramento who has interned for The Sacramento Bee and the Today Show’s digital team, among others. The daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, Elyse said she is committed to covering marginalized communities. At the Today Show, she wrote a story explaining how stereotypes of women of Asian descent as sexual objects contributed to the Atlanta shootings. Judges were impressed by her ambitious story ideas, good quotes and professional writing.
Katherine Huggins
The $4,000 Laurel Rosenhall Scholarship goes to Katherine Huggins. A Sacramentan graduating early from The New School, she’s interned for uPolitics, Public Seminar and Mediaite and will publish a story this summer that examines media coverage of gun violence. Then she’s off to Northwestern’s graduate journalism program specializing in her passion: politics, policy and foreign affairs. She told judges she’s not a political junkie but they weren’t convinced. After all, she’s looking forward to working on Capitol Hill.
Dylan Svoboda
The $4,000 Jerry Gillam Scholarship goes to Dylan Svoboda, a second-time scholarship winner. Dylan is at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, where he’s participated in the Investigative Reporting Program that is part of a collaboration to obtain and report on police records. He earlier worked for the Mountain Democrat and interned or freelanced at several other Sacramento-area newspapers after graduating from UC Davis. Judges said that foundation in local news helped him to flourish as a reporter. “His writing has a flow and energy to it,” judges said.
2020 Recipients
Sara Nevis
The $8,000 Hector Amezcua Scholarship goes to Sara Nevis, a single mom and Sacramento City College transfer to Sacramento State. After her career as an air traffic controller in the military was sidelined by cancer, she found a new passion for journalism. Mostly a photographer who also writes, Sara has been freelancing for the Stockton Record.
Rose Vega
The $6,200 Dale Kasler Scholarship goes to Rose Vega, a Sacramento City College transfer to Sacramento State who has been supporting herself since age 17. She wrote a compelling magazine piece about how she was molested in daycare as a young child, using legal documents and interviews to augment her memory.
Elena Neale-Sacks
The $5,000 Beth Ruyak Scholarship goes to Elena Neale-Sacks, a graduate of UC Santa Cruz who will be attending journalism school at UC Berkeley. After Elena produced a deeply-reported investigation into two students’ allegations of sexual harassment against a professor, he quit before he was fired.
Kelly Kiernan
The $4,000 Lonnie Wong Scholarship goes to Kelly Kiernan, a Sacramento State student focusing on broadcast and video. Kelly started the first regular broadcast show on campus and she is the multimedia editor at The Hornet, the student newspaper on campus. Advisers say she is a favorite of teachers and a leader among students.
Vivian Aguilar
The $4,000 Nereida Skelton Scholarship goes to Vivian Aguilar, a San Joaquin Delta College transfer to California State University, Monterey Bay, who recently finished an internship at the Lodi Sentinel. She did hard-nosed investigative reporting on a botched tech system rollout at her college that messed with students’ financial aid and classes, forcing administrators to become more transparent about how they were fixing it.
Dylan Svoboda
The $4,000 Dan Walters Scholarship goes to Dylan Svoboda, who works at the Mountain Democrat in Placerville, freelanced for the Sacramento News & Review and is on his way to the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. His clips reflect a deep understanding of local government.
Meghan Bobrowsky
The $4,000 Jerry Gillam Scholarship goes to Meghan Bobrowsky, who has interned at the Philadelphia Inquirer and The Sacramento Bee. She is headed to the Miami Herald this summer and is the the rare journalist who loves math and budget stories.
$8,000 Earl Squire Behrens scholarship was awarded to Sawsan Morrar, University of California, Berkeley.
$6,000 Jean Stephens scholarship was awarded to Daniel Wilson, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 Jerry Gillam scholarship was awarded to Thomas Oide, University of Missouri.
$4,000 Nereida Skelton scholarship was awarded to Bianca Quilantan, California State University, Chico.
$4,000 Steve Swatt scholarship was awarded to Emily Zentner, Arizona State University.
$4,000 Julie Soderlund scholarship was awarded to Alexandra Matthews, University of California, Berkeley.
$4,000 Dan Walters scholarship was awarded to Emmanuel Aguayo, California State University, Sacramento.
$8,000 Earl Squire Behrens scholarship was awarded to Gabriel Sandoval, California State University, Chico.
$6,000 Jean Stephens scholarship was awarded to Celina Oseguera, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
$4,000 Jerry Gillam scholarship was awarded to Jessica Hice, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 Nereida Skelton scholarship was awarded to Taylor Buck, Sacramento City College.
$4,000 Bob Schmidt scholarship was awarded to Brittany Murphy, University of California, Berkeley.
$4,000 Doug Willis scholarship was awarded to Jonathan Ayestas, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 Dan Walters scholarship was awarded to Leah Horner, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
$8,000 Earl Squire Behrens scholarship was awarded to Benjy Egel, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
$6,000 Jean Stephens scholarship was awarded to Brenna Lyles, University of California, Davis.
$4,000 Jerry Gillam scholarship was awarded to Leah Horner, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
$4,000 Nereida Skelton scholarship was awarded to Jessica Hice, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 Joan Lunden scholarship was awarded to Kate Houston, University of Oregon.
$4,000 Bob Fairbanks scholarship was awarded to Chloe Lessard, University of California, Berkeley.
$4,000 Dan Walters scholarship was awarded to Valentin Almanza-Mendez, California State University, Sacramento.
$8,000 Earl Squire Behrens scholarship was awarded to Quinn Western, California State University, Chico
$6,000 Jean Stephens scholarship was awarded to Lynne Shallcross, University of California, Berkeley.
$4,000 Jerry Gillam scholarship was awarded to Andrew Erickson, University of California, Los Angeles.
$4,000 Nereida Skelton scholarship was awarded to Jennifer Parsons, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 KW Lee scholarship was awarded to Paayal Zaveri, University of California, Davis.
$4,000 Kathleen Beasley scholarship was awarded to Kaitlin Bane, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 Dan Walters scholarship was awarded to Gregory Allen, California State University, Sacramento.
$8,000 Earl “Squire” Behrens scholarship was awarded to Julie Brown, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism.
$6,000 Jean Stephens scholarship was awarded to Brittany Patterson, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism.
$4,000 Sigred Bathen scholarship was awarded to Matthew Blackburn, California State University, Sacramento.
$4,000 A. G. Block scholarship was awarded to Brian Nguyen, University of California, Davis.
$4,000 Lou Canon scholarship was awarded to Jennifer Chausee, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism.
$4,000 Jerry Gillam scholarship was awarded to Madeleine Thomas, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism.
$4,000 Nereida Skelton scholarship was awarded to Valerie Smith, California State University, East Bay.
$8,000 – Earl “Squire” Behrens Scholarship – Adam Grossberg, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism
$6,000 – Jean Stephens Scholarship – Derek Lartaud, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism and School of Public Health
$4,000 – Frank McCulloch Scholarship – Titania Kumeh, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism
$4,000 – Stan Gilliam Scholarship – Casey Capachi, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism
$4,000 – Jerry Gillam Scholarship – Rachel Waldholz, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism
$4,000 – Rex Babin Scholarship – Anna Marie Sanchez, California State University, Sacramento
2011 Timothy Sandoval; Kevin Fixler; Christina Lopez; Gustavo Gutierrez; Elizabeth Hoffman
2010 ($17,500): Kyle Sporleder $6,000; Robin Epley $4,000; John Brennan $2,500; Kari Waterman $2,500; Lauren Callahan $2,500
2009 ($17,500): Todd Wilson $6,000; Steffi Broski $4,000; Maryanne Beck Luna $2,500; James Graben $2,500; Jen Siino $2,500.
2008 ($11,000): Luke Gianni $6,000; Talia Kennedy $3,000; Barri Worth $2,000.
2007 ($11,000): Nik Bonovich $6,000; Ian Kessler $3,000; Rosemell Opee $2,000.
2006 ($11,000): Amy Goldwitz $6,000; Meghann Farnsworth $3,000; Jonathan Hirn $2,000.
2005 ($7,000): Jeff Kearns $3,000; Sarah Pollo $2,500; Jimmy Spencer $1,500.
2004 ($7,000): Sarah Pollo $3,000; Jaclyn Schultz $2,000; ST Van Airsdale $1,000; Emily Page $1,000.
2003 ($7,000): Andy Jensen $3,000; ST Van Airsdale $2,500; Lindsay Comstock $1,500.
2002 ($4,000): Jon Ortiz $3,000; Antonio Sarabia $1,000.
2001 ($6,250): Greg Kane $3,000; Aaron Benevidez $2,500; Monica Ewing $750.
2000 ($7,000): Greg Kane $3,000; Jason Anderson $2,500; Charlotte Sandez Kosa $1,500
1999 ($7,000): Kristi Garrett $2,500; Clayton Stalter $2,000; Robert Johnson $1,500; Mike Hambree $1,000.
1998 ($6,000): John Montgomery; June Vargas; Melissa Jones.