Connor Pearce, Phi Kappa Phi Grants and Awards Chair, presents Bobbie Handcock with the award for her inspiring essay.
Bobbie Handcock, a rhetoric and writing graduate student from Lonoke, has won the 2022 Phi Kappa Phi Essay Contest and a $250 scholarship.
Phi Kappa Phi, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock, selected Handcock as the winner of its 1,000-word essay contest on the theme: Love of Learning in a Pandemic.
鈥淚 am so honored to receive this award so early in my graduate career,鈥� said Handcock, who is in her first semester of graduate school. 鈥淭he scholarship means a lot to me, and it will really help me as I pursue my master鈥檚 degree.鈥�
Handcock, who works as a web content specialist in the Office of Communications and Marketing, plans to graduate in 2024 with a Master of Arts in Professional and Technical Writing degree. She is a first-generation college student who will be the first person in her family to earn a master鈥檚 degree.
Handcock wrote about how the COVID-19 pandemic encouraged her to make important changes in her life. She had always dreamed of getting her master鈥檚 degree, so Handcock took a new and challenging position at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock where she can take advantage of the tuition discount for university employees.
鈥淐OVID helped me refocus and renew my love of learning,鈥� Handcock wrote. 鈥淚t helped me pause and see what was possible. COVID might have driven me to grad school but I鈥檓 now the one at the wheel.鈥�
