MSP is committed to contributing annually to assist in student scholarships and aid. Scholarship and financial assistance funding is supported by gifts from alumni, family, and friends. Generally, funds are disbursed in the form of tuition credit.
Scholarships for continuing students are awarded in November. This academic year Derrick Sebree, second year PsyD student, was awarded the Jill Benton Humanistic Psychology Scholarship (JBHPS), and Roxanne Christensen, third year PsyD student, was awarded the Aombaye Ramsey Diversity Award (ARDA). The honorees have written acceptance statements for their scholarship awards.
The JBHPS scholarship honors Jill Benton, former MSP librarian and alumna, and her commitment to aiding student research in humanistic psychology. The JBHPS supports a second-year (PsyD II) student who completed the MA program and was admitted and enrolled directly into the PsyD program; and is committed to advancing the science and practice of humanistic psychology. Eligibility criteria are completion of the MA program at MSP with immediate enrollment into and successful completion of the first year of the PsyD program; demonstration of a commitment to humanistic psychology with a passion for learning and research throughout both programs; continuous good academic standing and full-time enrollment; and advocacy for MSP via positive contributions to its community.
Derrick Sebree, PsyD II
I am honored to have received the Jill-Benton Scholarship this year. To me, this award marks my continued journey to expand and grow as a scholar-practitioner by allowing me to expand my horizons and continue my growth as a budding professional. With this honor, I hope to represent MSP at the APA Annual Convention this year in Washington, DC as a presenter and an advocate for social justice. I plan to continue my community work in DC with the development of a service day for conference attendees on an urban farm in the area as a way to embody the mission and meaning of this award.
Aombaye Ramsey Diversity Award (ARDA)
The Aombaye Ramsey Diversity Award (ARDA) was created in 2004 to honor Dr. Aombaye Ramsey’s lifelong commitment to social justice. This award supports a third year (PsyD III) student who shares that same commitment to advocate on behalf of diversity issues. Priority will be given to applicants who belong to an ethnic, racial, or cultural group traditionally underrepresented in the field of psychology. Eligibility criteria are demonstrated promotion of diversity issues and awareness through professional presentations, clinical work and/or research; expertise in working with and strong advocacy of underserved populations; and continuous good academic standing and full-time enrollment.
Roxanne Christensen, PsyD III, PsyD III
It was important to me to research the namesake of a scholarship for which I am applying. This is both my personal tradition to honor Dr. Ramsey, as well as a way to engage the meaning of the award far beyond a financial endowment and into a lifeforce of the great works of its origins. Learning about Dr. Ramsey and the values which he stood for was enlightening and invigorating. Being a recipient of the Aombaye Ramsey Diversity Award offered to me a moment of great reflection on the personal and professional growths I have made as a student of MSP. Yet it was the unintended reward of continuing that reflection toward who I desire to be both personally and professionally, and the direction which I imagine myself continuing to grow, which was the true gift.
This scholarship came at a time of great purpose in my life. I had written for the scholarship before tragic events had befallen people I care for, and received news of its acceptance afterward. I did not expect to be a changed person, and yet found myself reviewing my application essay with a different internal voice. Perhaps merely exacerbated by the personal nature of this recent loss or the compounded effects of its placement in my professional and research work, the conglomerated sadness of those events as a microcosm of the tragedies that befall humanity was beginning to wear on me. I was in need of a resurgence and reminder of what I want to do as a student and as a practitioner, and the ways in which I desire to hold hope lit for those like me whose candles start to sway in the same dark and cold winds. Although I would have eventually found my way, the sequence of events as they unfolded allowed for the important reminder that our affects are changed by the effects of the world, but that such does not require an alteration in the core of our Being. For this re-igniting of my passions I could never accurately express my gratitude to Dr. Ramsey. By accepting this award I commit myself to honoring Dr. Ramsey’s integrity and soul, and continuing to stoke the flames which he started. I am humbly honored and entirely grateful to Dr. Ramsey and MSP for this opportunity.
