UC Student Wins State Art Education Scholarship

For the second year in a row, a University of Cincinnati master’s student has won the top award in the Ohio Art Education Association Scholarship competition.

The 2011 first-place winner of the OAEA’s scholarship contest is UC art education master’s student Priya Rama, a resident of Mason, Ohio. She recently won a $2,000 scholarship based on an essay answering the question “Why Teach” and a statement of teaching philosophy and intent.

According to Rama, “The best part about winning the scholarship is that it gave me confidence, a belief in myself. That’s especially true since I’m a non-traditional student, and I have wondered if I’m doing the right thing in going back to school and if I’m doing work that matters.”

She adds, “I feel that the scholarship award is an affirmation that someone appreciates what I have to say, the voice that I bring to the art-education classroom.”

Rama previously worked as a fourth-grade teacher in Texas before moving to the Cincinnati area in 2009; however, her teaching license did not transfer to Ohio.

She had always been interested in the intersection of art and design and teaching, and so, entered the art education graduate program in UC’s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning in fall 2010.

Rama almost didn’t apply for the OAEA scholarship, since the application was due this past June just as end-of-the-year projects were winding up in the college. “In a way, the application felt like one more thing to do, and I didn’t really know if I had a chance,” recalls Rama.

However, as it turns out, her chances were obviously quite good.

• Apply to UC’s graduate program in art education.