Four more EIU students earn prestigious DFI scholarships
Aug-26-2024Awards mark 8 consecutive years, 16 total recipients for EIU’s College of Education
Moody, Paniagua,Rosenthal, Townsend
(Charleston, IL) – Eastern Illinois University College of Education graduate students Brianna Townsend, Josiah Moodie, Samaria Rosenthal, and Luis Paniagua have been awarded a Diversifying Higher Education Faculty in Illinois (DFI) Fellowship for the 2024-25 academic year. At least one EIU student has been awarded a DFI Fellowship each year since the 2017-18 academic year, with a total of 16 EIU students earning the distinction in the past eight years.
Townsend, Moodie, and Rosenthal each will receive a first-time $16K scholarship, while Paniagua has earned a $17.5K renewal on the original scholarship he earned during the 2023-24 academic year. Their awards come from the State of Illinois to support their studies as they work to graduate and later secure jobs in higher education in Illinois. Each of the students are currently pursuing graduate degrees from EIU’s College of Education. Prior to their time at EIU, Townsend graduated from Thornton Fractional North High School in Calumet City, Moodie graduated from Bronzeville High School in Chicago, Rosenthal graduated from Kankakee Trinity Academy, while Paniagua graduated from Waukegan High School. All four earned their undergraduate degrees from EIU.
EIU Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Ryan Hendrickson expressed his excitement for the opportunities these scholarships provide, and once again for seeing students from EIU so well represented in earning the select honor.
“These awards from the State of Illinois speak to the quality and integrity of our students and the excellence of EIU’s education programs,” Hendrickson said. “EIU continues to meet the existing, emerging and growing needs of Illinois’ education in cities, towns, and rural communities across the State, and I look forward to the outstanding contributions of these four exceptional leaders in Illinois universities.”
Past EIU recipients of the DFI award include Maliya Smith (2017), Courtney Walton (2018), Emmanuel Ayiku, Chanell Hall and Kiona Webber (2019), Ly’Jerrick Ward (2020), Nyjah Lane and Brandy Matthews (2021), Dionne Lipscomb (2022), and Norriana Hayes, Lois Karimu, Chavionne Thomas and Paniagua (2023).
According to the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) website, DFI is a statutorily authorized program that directly addresses educational disparities in educational attainment by race, ethnicity, income and region. The goal of DFI is to increase the number of minority full-time tenure track faculty and staff at Illinois' two- and four-year public and private colleges and universities by providing financial assistance to students with demonstrated financial need to assist them in completing graduate degree programs.
DFI Fellow recipients are strongly encouraged to actively seek and accept full-time employment in the education sector in the State of Illinois for a period at least equal to the number of years they spent as a DFI Fellow. In addition, program administrators work with higher education institutions like EIU to offer workshops and pursue other outreach opportunities that meet the goals and objectives of the initiative.
EIU prepares students to accomplish their life goals through a combination of quality academics, personal relationships, and both on-campus and online learning opportunities. For more information about Eastern Illinois University, including its broad array of academic and career readiness programs, or any of EIU’s other community-based services and opportunities, visit eiu.edu or call EIU’s public information office at (217) 581-7400.
