Game academy names scholarship winners for WomenIn program

The game industry’s professional academy, the AIAS Foundation, has announced the scholarship recipients for its WomenIn program.

The Los Angeles-based group, which is the philanthropic arm of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, awarded scholarships to 11 women students for the 2016-2017 academic school year. Each student will receive $2,500 to advance their academic careers in video-game related programs at four-year colleges and universities. The AIAS puts on the Dice Summit game conference each spring in Las Vegas.

“These eleven AIAS Foundation WomenIn scholars are great examples of how and by whom the games industry will continue to grow and diversify in the future,” said Don Daglow, president of the AIAS Foundation, in a statement. “We are proud to support their education and to welcome them to the 2017 D.I.C.E. Conference and pair them with experienced industry mentors.”

Established in 2016, these scholarships support inclusion of more women in the interactive entertainment industry. The women can participate in a year-long mentorship program with a gaming industry professional. Winners were evaluated by the AIAS Foundation Scholarship Committee based on their GPA, financial need, letters of recommendation and willingness to create change for the games industry.

The scholarship winners for the 2016-2017 academic school year include:

• Sydney Adams, studying English at Stony Brook University
• Stephanie Chen, studying Computer Science at Columbia University
• Martha Monica, studying Computer Science (Game Development) at University of Southern California
• Sarah Belhumeur, studying Digital Media at Maine College of Art
• Franzi  Wischmann, studying Film and Media Arts at University of Utah
• Sydnie Ritchie, studying Entertainment Arts and Engineering at Brigham Young University
• Maya DeJesus, studying Creative Arts and Technology (Game Development) at Bloomfield College
• Allison Cole, studying Game Design at New York University
• Jing Shu, studying Entertainment Technology at Carnegie Mellon University
• Ciarra Matthews, studying Design at University of California, Davis
• Rachel Hwang, studying Computer Graphics and Game Technology at the University of Pennsylvania

The AIAS Foundation’s Randy Pausch and Mark Beaumont scholarships will open in Spring 2017. Submission forms will be available at www.aiasfoundation.org.