Students’ joy at £10,000 grants
SIR TOM COWIE MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP AWARD IS GIVEN OUT TO TWO CITY STUDENTS EACH YEAR
Two students with a passion for education and business have been chosen to continue the legacy of a champion of enterprise and learning.
Primary Education student Vicky Graham, 34, and Business and Financial Management student Jesse Thompson, 22, are both in the final year of their studies at Sunderland University.
The pair have won this year’s Sir Tom Cowie Memorial Scholarship Award, receiving £10,000 each to support them in their final year.
The award was set up in memory of the Wearsideborn entrepreneur who died in 2012, aged 89.
Sir Tom was a long-term supporter of the university, and believed passionately in its principles of affording those with talent, regardless of background, the opportunity to enter higher education.
As part of his legacy, the scholarship awards were set up to support students to achieve their full potential.
The scholarship, now in its seventh year, is awarded to a male and female student from the Sunderland area who, at the end of their pe- nultimate year of study have demonstrated an excellent academic record and are on track to secure a First Class Honours Degree or upper Second Class Honours Degree.
Jesse, from Hendon, said: “Growing up in Sunderland, I have heard of Sir Tom Cowie, and I saw the positive effect the scholarship had on previous students, which made me keen to take up the same opportunity.”
Mum-of-three Vicky Graham, from Sunderland, said: “Thanks to the scholarship I have been able to reduce my hours at work and pay for additional childcare to fully immerse myself in my studies.”