Columbia Central

Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Scholarship

For continuing undergraduate students

The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Scholarship was established to honor the late Yarka Vendrinska, who was an avid photographer and interested in subjects who would otherwise be overlooked. The 3-year renewable scholarship is awarded to one sophomore Photography student who demonstrates considerable achievement and financial need. Preference is given to students interested in social photography.

• How to Apply

  Visit Internal Scholarships and click on APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIPS to access the College-Wide Undergraduate Scholarship Application. Only complete scholarship applications submitted by the deadline will be reviewed by the scholarship committee. 

  Please follow all directions carefully. Students must submit the following materials to make a complete Jim Jacobs Musical Theatre Scholarship application. There are five parts to the application:

  PART 1: PORTFOLIO
  Submit a digital portfolio of 12-18 jpegs that are 1000px on the shortest dimension. Photographs may be color or black and white, and organized in the following manner:

  • 3 series, (6 images in each) or
  • 2 series (9 images in each) or
  • 1 series (12-18 images)

  Note: Upload size limit is 50MB.
  
  

  PART 2: ESSAY
  In a one- to two-page essay, address the following:
  

  1. How do you see your photography in relation to social issues?
  2. Choose one social issue that you are most passionate about that affects people living in Chicago and explain why it is important to you.
  3. Choose a social issue that has been documented within the past 5 years and explain how the photographs have contributed to a desired outcome or awareness of that particular issue. Submit 3 photographs for reference and explain why you chose those photographs. Reference to the images discussed can be by letter or number (e.g. Photograph A, Photograph B, and Photograph C).
  4. If you could have access to any community, anywhere in the world to make photographs about, what community would you choose and why?
     
     

  Your essay must be double-spaced and must include your name and MyColumbia ID number in the upper right-hand corner of each page. Please upload your essay in .pdf, .doc, or .docx format. 
  
  

  PART 3: REFERENCE PHOTOGRAPHS
  Upload the photographs referenced in your essay.
  

  Upload your sample in .pdf, .doc, .docx format. Note: Upload size limit is 50MB.
  
  

  PART 4: STUDENT AID REPORT
  A current Student Aid Report (SAR) must be on file. To receive an SAR, students must complete a 2022-23 financial aid application (FAFSA) by October 31, 2022.
  
  

  Access online applications through Internal Scholarships.

• About Yarka Vendrinska
  The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Scholarship was established in memory of Yarka Vendrinska by her parents, Mark and Tanya Bohr. Yarka was an avid photographer and interested in subjects who would otherwise be overlooked. She passed away in 2002.
  
  As stated by Mr. and Mrs. Bohr on the Memorial Fund website at www.yarkasfund.org:
  
  Over the years, [Yarka’s] skill as a photojournalist was nurtured by the people she met and her overwhelming desire for the perfect technical aspects of her pictures. Concurrently, significant and powerful events which occurred to her personally during her life gave her a unique perspective and deep personal understanding of the life and souls of her subjects. I encourage you to take a moment to visit her website at www.yarka.net. You will quickly become aware that she had a strong connection with all people she photographed, and was able to capture their images in a way that shows a powerful insight to their lives.
  
  To attempt to continue the giving and "understanding of others" that Yarka provided us all through her pictures, we wanted to do something to show to those who need it that kindness and hope are definitely still alive. That is why we decided to endow a fund to offer assistance to those young photojournalists in need to pursue their dreams. In this way, Yarka is still part of the world that she loved, and her compassion for others will stay alive via her fund.
• Scholarship Terms
  • Application must be submitted by October 31, 2022 (11:59 pm) for review by the committee
  • The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Scholarship is automatically renewable up to three years provided the recipient:
    • enrolls full-time as a Photography major each Fall and Spring semester
    • does not interrupt enrollment
    • maintains a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average
    • continues to complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each year and this application demonstrates continued financial need
    • participates in thanking the donor(s) each year before funds are disbursed.
  • Scholarship amount is up to $2,500 per academic year, awarded half in Fall and half in Spring semesters only; scholarships do not apply to Summer semesters
  • Scholarship is applied toward tuition only
  • Students’ scholarships that are applied toward tuition may not exceed the amount of their tuition costs
  • Recipients must have submitted all outstanding documents to Columbia Central before the scholarship can be disbursed. Students can review missing documents in the MyColumbia portal under MyFinancials
  • Scholarship may be used toward a study abroad program through one of Columbia's student exchange programs. Please note: Recipients who enroll in an independent study abroad program will forfeit their scholarship during the semester spent abroad;
  • The rules governing other sources of financial aid (federal, state, institutional and other grants, gifts, or loans) will apply.

IMPORTANT DATES