The application window for the Volney Meece Scholarship is now open, and the Football Writers Association of America has expanded the groups of college students who are eligible to win it.

The $1,000 multi-year scholarship is given annually by the FWAA to help a deserving college student defray the cost of a higher education.

This year marks an important transition year for the award. The FWAA is expanding the eligibility qualifications beyond the ones that were in place for the first 26 years of it. Starting this year, the FWAA will accept applications from:

• FWAA members’ sons and daughters who are in college now, who may not have applied before or who want to re-apply.
• FWAA student members (not the sons or daughters of FWAA members) who are in college and still are working on degrees, such as a freshman or sophomore who has more years left in college and may even be considering graduate school.
• Children of College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA) who are entering college or are in early in their college years. The CSC members do not have to be current FWAA members.

The FWAA awards the scholarship annually to a deserving student. It is a multi-year scholarship. For someone to win the award in their senior year of high school, the scholarship is worth up to $4,000.

Since the scholarship’s creation in 1997, the FWAA has distributed more than $100,000 to deserving students.

The scholarship is named for the late Volney Meece, who was the FWAA’s President in 1971 and served as its executive director for 22 years. He was a well-known and highly regarded sportswriter and columnist at the Oklahoma City Times and at The Oklahoman. He retired in 1991 and passed away in 1995 at age 70.

For a link to an application, please email Alan Schmadtke at schmad09@gmail.com. The application deadline is Dec. 15, 2023. The winner will be announced in January 2024 at the FWAA’s annual meeting.

Please note that part of the application process is gathering updated high school or college transcripts, and that process can take a few weeks, depending on the school’s records policies.

In addition, the FWAA asks that the student applying for the scholarship complete the application. We feel this shows an important level of inspiration and commitment to gain the scholarship.

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The FWAA is a collection of journalists, broadcasters, publicists of college football and key executives involved in all aspects of the sport. It was founded in 1941 and consists largely of members across North America who cover college football for a living.

A 501-c-6 nonprofit organization, the FWAA works to help govern areas that include game-day operations and postseason awards. In addition to the Volney Meece Scholarship, the FWAA also sponsors an All-America team, an All-Freshman team, and an annual writing contest. Through its website, the FWAA works to improve communication among all those who work within the game. Membership in the FWAA is open to accredited members of the media and other organizations affiliated with college football. All applications are subject to the approval of the association’s board of directors. If you have a question regarding membership, please contact FWAA Executive Director Steve Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com.

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