DIT launches Mary Holland scholarships

Two new journalism scholarships established in honour of the late Irish Times journalist Mary Holland were presented at a reception in Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) yesterday evening. The awards are aimed at encouraging prospective students who are living in Ireland – but who were not born in the country – to apply to study journalism at Masters level. The first two recipients are Monika Bartkowska from Poland and Kolawola Ogunbiyi from Nigeria. Ms Bartkowska has started her studies on the MA in Journalism programme at DIT, while Mr Ogunbiyi has enrolled on the MA in International Journalism at DIT’s school of media. Both will receive the full cost of their tuition fees, including a waiver of any non-EU national tuition fees where applicable. Ms Holland, who died in June 2004, was an acclaimed journalist and broadcaster, who worked as a columnist with The Irish Times, the Sunday Tribune, and the Observer. Professor Brian Norton, president of DIT, hopes the scholarships will help different voices to be heard in journalism. “The scholarships have been dedicated to the memory of the late Mary Holland, in recognition of her significant contribution as a journalist, and in particular, her commitment to human rights and a more open and diverse Ireland,” he said. The awards have been established under the auspices of the Forum on Migration and Communications, which aims to produce print, photographic, broadcast and interactive stories on immigration and integration. Supported by The Atlantic Philanthropies, it is led by the Centre for Transcultural Research and Media Practice at DIT.