糖心Vlog传媒

Matson Donates $25,000 to Create Scholarship for Rhetoric and Writing Students at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock

Dr. Joanne Liebman Matson, professor of rhetoric and writing, is celebrating her department鈥檚 and her parents鈥� commitment to education with the creation of an endowed scholarship at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Matson鈥檚 donation of $25,000 will establish the Quarter Century Excellence Endowed Scholarship for the benefit of rhetoric and writing students at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock. The scholarship will recognize the progress of 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock鈥檚 Department of Rhetoric and Writing in its first 25 years of existence, while also honoring the lifelong commitment to learning and education of Matson鈥檚 parents, Judith and Jerome Liebman of Cleveland, Ohio. 鈥淢y parents really believed in education, and that is why I wanted to honor them,鈥� Matson said. 鈥淚 also wanted to honor the Department of Rhetoric and Writing for their many years of helping students. These students are such an amazing group of people who we can continue to support.鈥� Jerome Liebman was a doctor, pediatric cardiologist, and professor of academic medicine at Case Western Reserve University. 鈥淗e was very much an educator as much as he was a doctor,鈥� Matson said. 鈥淲hat was important to him was teaching. He was the first pediatric cardiologist between Boston and Chicago. He trained a lot of the first generation of pediatric cardiologists across the country. My mother was a nurse, and they met on a medical ward in Boston. She ended up having three master鈥檚 degrees.鈥� Having struggled to afford a college education themselves, the Liebmans always stressed the importance of education to their children. 鈥淲hen my sisters, brother, and I were growing up, our parents鈥� philosophy was to pay for anything that was education related and nothing else,鈥� Matson said. 鈥淣either could afford a college education. My father paid for college by entering the Army Officer Training program, and my mother worked full-time as a nurse while getting her degree.鈥� Jerome Liebman passed away in 2016, and Judith Liebman passed away at the beginning of the pandemic. 鈥淭his donation is part of what they left to me,鈥� Matson added. The scholarship is open to part-time or full-time undergraduate and graduate students. Preference will be given to graduate students until the fund can support two annual awards, at which point the award will be given to one graduate and one undergraduate student. The scholarship can provide financial assistance to rhetoric and writing students for education-related expenses like tuition, books, fees, and room and board. Matson has been a staple at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock for nearly four decades. She joined 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock working in the Department of English in 1983. She served as the freshman composition coordinator from 1986 to 1992, when she made a move to the provost鈥檚 office to serve as the associate vice chancellor for academic affairs. In 2001, Matson returned to the Department of Rhetoric and Writing where she has been teaching full time ever since.