STATE – Maine students interested in careers in journalism are invited to apply for post-secondary scholarships from the Guy P. Gannett Journalism Scholarship Fund at the Maine Community Foundation (MaineCF).

The scholarship honors businessman and entrepreneur Guy P. Gannett, who launched his newspaper career in 1921 with the purchase of two newspapers he merged into the Portland Press Herald. By 1998 when the family sold Guy Gannett Communications, its media reach spanned several states with three daily newspapers in Maine and seven television stations.

Gannett’s granddaughter Maddy Corson and her uncle John Gannett established the Guy P. Gannett Scholarship Fund in 2000 to pay tuition and expenses for Maine students who dream of careers in journalism. Since then, the initial $3 million scholarship fund – MaineCF’s largest – has helped educate nearly 150 students with more than $3.8 million in support. In 2021, 16 students were awarded $332,000 in scholarship support.

The Gannett Scholarship provides renewable support for students majoring in journalism or a field reasonably related, including print, broadcast, or electronic media. The fund helps pay the cost of attendance to attend an undergraduate, graduate, trade or technical school.

Applicants must be graduates of Maine high schools or have been home-schooled in Maine during their last year of secondary education. Students are chosen based on demonstrated interest in journalism through their choice of coursework and extracurricular activities, as well as financial need and academic achievement. The application deadline is April 1, 2022. Apply online at www.mainecf.org.