Scholarships and Awards

Frederick J. Hoffman Award

• This award is given to the best essay by a currently enrolled graduate student (master’s or doctoral level) in the Department of English.
• Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Gerald J. Alred Professional Writing Challenge Award - Fall Semester

This award competition is by invitation only. Students who are enrolled in English 205, 206, and 207 as part of the UWM Milwaukee campus bachelor’s degree program are nominated by their instructor based on their demonstrated professional writing skills. Associate degree students and Flex program students are not eligible for this competition.

Nominees are selected to compete for a $500 prize! Winners will be selected by a panel of judges including UWM faculty and instructors and professional writers in the community representing various industries and media outlets. All entries will be reviewed anonymously and the judges will not know your name until the final selection is made. The first-place winner will receive $500 for the semester following their enrollment in English 205, 206, or 207 and therefore must be enrolled for at least one more semester in order to receive the scholarship. A second and third place winner will also be named but there is no monetary scholarship.

All participants will receive a certificate of participation and will be invited to an annual ceremony held in February.

This competition is held twice a year on the Fall UWM Study Day and the Spring UWM Study Day. Selected students who are enrolled in English 205, 206, and 207 during summer or fall 2023 will compete on December 15, 2023. Selected students who are enrolled in English 205, 206, and 207 during spring 2024 will compete on May 10, 2024. Your entry will need to address a specific business case that will be posted here at 10:00 am on the day of the competition. Please refresh your browser to see that case at that time along with the button to submit your entry. You will have two hours to upload your entry.

Chancellor's Graduate Student Award in English

Chancellor’s awards for graduate students in English as chosen by the department. Students do not need to submit an application to be considered for this award.

Dr. Alice Gillam Scholarship

• The Dr. Alice Gillam scholarship is for a currently-enrolled graduate student in the Department of English whose work exemplifies the intellectual and humane discipline of rhetoric and composition.
• The recipient is selected by the faculty in the Department of English; no student application is needed.
• Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Dr. Donna Decker Scholarship for English Department

• The Dr. Donna Decker scholarship is given to one English major and one Journalism major each year.
• Eligible students are enrolled full-time with junior or senior standing, a major in English, and a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5.
• Second degree students are not eligible.
• Students who have an up-to-date Panther Scholarship Portal General Application and the College of Letters & Science Scholarships and Awards Application will be • Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Elizabeth Babbitt Memorial Scholarship

The Babbitt Scholarship is for intended or declared undergraduate English majors enrolled full-time with demonstrated financial need and a record of academic excellence.
• Preference will be given to first-year and sophomore students.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Thomas J. Bontly Fiction Award

When funds are available, the Thomas J. Bontly Fiction Award is given to a graduate student in the Department of English who has produced an exceptional work of fiction. Applications are typically accepted in mid-spring each year.

Virginia Burke Award

• The Virginia Burke Award is given to degree-seeking bachelor’s students at the UWM main campus who demonstrate excellence in English 102 – College Writing and Research.
• Associate degree students who take CGS ENG 102 and flex students are not eligible.
• Applications are accepted in the spring semester for students who took Englis 102 during the previous year.
• Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

James A. Sappenfield Fellowship

The Sappenfield Fellowship is given to outstanding graduate students in the Department of English. The recipients are selected by the faculty in the Department of English; no student application is needed.

Tinsley Helton Dissertation Fellowship

• The Tinsley Helton Dissertation Fellowship is given to a student in the Department of English studying Literary Studies, Creative Writing, or Composition who is in the dissertation phase of their degree.
• Eligible students must have completed all of their PhD coursework and met the PhD residency requirements.
• Eligible students will have passed their preliminary exams and their dissertation topic will have been approved.
• Faculty advisors will be consulted and the selected student will have received a strong recommendation amongst the faculty.
• There is no application required.

Wladyslaw Cieszynski English Fellowship for Prose

• This award is given to the best essay by a currently enrolled graduate student (master’s or doctoral level) in the Department of English.
• Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Wladyslaw Cieszynski English Fellowship for Verse

• The Wladyslaw Cieszynski Memorial Award in Verse is for a currently-enrolled graduate student in the Department of English who is entering their last year of study and has a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA.
• This award is for one previously published online or print poem of no more than two pages.
• Submit a PDF copy of the journal cover or website’s front page, table of contents if applicable, and the published piece with the author’s name blacked out.
• Students apply by uploading their essay, which should be free of any identifying information.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Department of English Award

• The Department of English Creative Writing award is for graduate students in the Creative Writing program in the Department of English.

Bourdeaux VIsiting Writer Awards:

• For students applying to the Boudreaux Award – Poetry, please submit up to three pages of unpublished poems in a single file.
• For Students, applying to the Bourdreaux Award – Prose, please submit your essay in a single file.

• Students who have an up-to-date Panther Scholarship Portal General Application and the College of Letters & Science Scholarships and Awards Application will be considered, typically in spring each year between February and April.
• The award is announced in the spring and paid in the following fall semester for an awardee enrolled at UWM that fall.

Gerald J. Alred Professional Writing Challenge Award - Spring Semester

Gerald J. Alred Professional Writing Challenge

Spring 2026-Case

Background

You are Sunshine Applebaum, a recent college graduate who works at the local branch of Nourishing Americans Now (NAN), a national non-profit organization that receives funding from supporters throughout the U.S. to serve the community that relies on food and other assistance. Your job as Inventory and Supply Manager is to keep track of inventory and replenish food items from area suppliers, which include organic farms. Recently, there has been an increasing demand for your organization’s resources, and you have been assigned the additional duty of increasing the number of suppliers. Your job requires effective professional communication skills with everyone with whom you must interact.

Recently, you received a letter from Robert Greenley, one of NAN’s long-time, major suppliers, who expressed concern about some of the new crew members who pick up fresh produce from his farm to deliver to your branch. Greenley is well respected by other suppliers and could serve as a liaison between you and these suppliers in the community. Greenley was disturbed by what he stated was a lack of courtesy and gratitude for his efforts. He was specifically bothered by their unwillingness to make small talk and their lack of facial expressions, and he has demanded that you discipline these crew members. You are concerned that other suppliers may have also experienced communication issues with new crew members, although you have not witnessed any negative behavior.

It is important that you maintain a positive relationship with Greenley. Many community members rely on his farm’s produce through NAN. You recall reading a recent online article in bizzcombuzz.com, a newsletter that provides suggestions about good professional communication and concerning trends that should be avoided; the article discussed what Greenley described in his letter: A “blank, unexpressive gaze, accompanied by a lack of response to a question.” According to the article, causes for this behavior may be social awkwardness, lack of etiquette, slow processing of information, or even a desire to be “left alone,” which demonstrate poor interpersonal skills in the workplace.

As soon as you received Greenley’s letter, you asked the director of NAN to hold a meeting with all crew members to provide them with training in positive non-verbal and verbal communication with suppliers. The meeting has been scheduled for later this week. Now, you must respond to Greenley to do “damage control.”

Instructions

Write a one-page letter to Robert Greenley using letterhead that you create for NAN. Use professional writing principles to address negative news. Show sensitivity and understanding, and explain steps taken to address his concerns without blaming employees or trying to justify their behavior. Be cautious about how you discuss internal matters. Consider how you can reassure Greenley of NAN’s value and his contributions to support NAN’s mission.

Provide your entry number in the top right corner of your letter. Use Sunshine Applebaum’s name and title instead of your real name.