Awards
As part of our mandate to improve the education and the professional status of women, the Zonta Club of Ottawa, Canada established an annual bursary and awards program.
This is a list of the awards we offer, below you will find details and applications for each award:
- Young Women in Public Affairs Award (now available!)
- Jean M. Coon Humanitarian Award (now available!)
- Theatre Arts Bursary (now available!)
- Mature Student Bursary (not online — available through your financial aid office)
- Jane M Klausman Women in Business Scholarship (now available!)
- New Immigrant Award (now available!)
- Amelia Earhart Fellowship (closed Nov. 15, 2019)
Women in Technology Scholarship(pilot program, no longer offered)
A celebration of achievement!
Join us in May 2020 for a night to honour our award winners and all their achievements, passions, and dreams they are pursuing.
Details will be added as finalized.
Award Descriptions:
YOUNG WOMEN IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS AWARD
Available now!
Each year, the Young Women in Public Affairs Award recognizes young women in the Ottawa area, ages 16 to 19, for demonstrating leadership skills and commitment to public service and civic causes. The award honours young women who participate in public affairs, by recognizing a commitment to the volunteer sector, evidence of volunteer leadership achievements and a dedication to the advancement of the status of women.
What is the value of the award?
The winner will receive $800 and will have the opportunity to compete for the District award of US$1,500.
Deadline: March 15, 2020
Application: click here! (opens in new window as PDF)
Forward your completed application to Lynda Pearson (chair) at her email address: zontaottawayouth@gmail.com
JEAN M. COON HUMANITARIAN AWARD
Available now!
The Jean M. Coon Humanitarian Award honours high school juniors and seniors in the Ottawa area who demonstrate exceptional humanitarian community service.
What is the value of the award?
The winner will receive $800 and will have the opportunity to compete at the district level for an award of US$1,000.
Deadline: March 15, 2020
Applications for 2020: click here! (opens in new window as PDF)
Forward your application to Lynda Pearson (committee chair) at her email address: zontaottawayouth@gmail.com
THEATRE ARTS BURSARY
Available now!
Scholarships are awarded annually to women in the National Capital Region who are currently enrolled in a post- secondary theatre program. These awards enable talented & qualified young women to achieve their professional goals.
Eligibility
Bursaries are awarded annually to women in the National Capital Region who are currently enrolled in a post-secondary theatre program that enables talented young women to achieve their professional goals.
Deadline: February 29, 2020
Applications for 2020: click here (opens as a PDF)
DID YOU KNOW actress Sandra Oh was an early recipient of ZCO Theatre Arts bursary?
MATURE STUDENTS BURSARY
Available now!
Two bursaries are given to students who have had to interrupt their studies or formal education for medical, financial or other reasons, & are returning to complete their program(s).
What is the bursary?
The Zonta Club of Ottawa, Canada provides financial assistance to mature female undergraduate students registered at the University of Ottawa or Carleton University.
Eligibility
An applicant must be a mature woman and student who has completed high school and who is entering university, or returning to university, after an interruption in her formal education.
Note
The 2019/2020 Award information will be available online through the University of Ottawa and Carleton University Financial Services Bursary Programs. There is no application available through our website.
Applications for 2020: (posted by University of Ottawa & Carleton University only)
JANE M KLAUSMAN
WOMEN IN BUSINESS SCHOLARSHIP
Available now!
This Scholarship is awarded annually to a woman pursuing an undergraduate or master’s degree in business management at a university in the National Capital Region, and Kingston, On.
What is the scholarship?
Women have made great strides in the pursuit of education, careers and leadership roles they were once denied. However, they still comprise a minority of leaders in the business world. According to a February 2018 list from Catalyst, 21.2 percent of Fortune 500 companies’ board seats are occupied by women, and just 5.2 percent of the companies’ CEOs are women.
Because Zonta International believes in gender equality, the Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship program helps women pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in business management and overcome gender barriers from the classroom to the boardroom. The Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship was established in 1998 from a generous bequest by Jane M. Klausman, a member of the Zonta Club of Syracuse, New York, USA, and the 1990-1995 Zonta International Parliamentarian.
What is the value of the award?
A winner will be chosen by the Zonta Club of Ottawa, Canada and a cash award of CA$1000 will be presented to the awardee at the Zonta Awards Reception in May, 2020.
The program operates at the Zonta club, district/region and international levels. Zonta annually awards up to 32 scholarships of US$2,000 each at the district/region level and six international scholarships in the amount of US$8,000 each.
Since the program’s inception, Zonta has awarded 564 Scholarships, totalling more than US$1.3 million to 428 women representing 57 countries.
2020 Jane M Klausman Poster: 2020_ JMK Poster
Application for 2020: click here! (opens as PDF)
Deadline: April 10, 2020
NEW IMMIGRANT AWARD
Available now!
What is the New Immigrant Award?
The award is given to a newcomer who is a resident of Ottawa/Gatineau, is a single mother and is raising a family while working on her own education at any level. The New Immigrant Woman Award is for a Mature Immigrant Student to assist her in her studies at any level, including Language training, High School Diploma, College or University.
What is the value of the award?
A winner will be chosen by the Zonta Club of Ottawa, Canada and a cash award of CA$1000 will be presented to the awardee at the Zonta Awards Reception in May 2020.
Eligibility
The applicant must demonstrate that she:
- Is a resident of Ottawa or Hull/Gatineau;
- Immigrated to Canada after the age of 18;
- Is a single mother with one or more dependent children;
- Has been in Canada for five years or less;
- Is in need of financial support for formal education and/or is challenged by interruptions to her own education.
English Poster/Application: click here! (opens in new window as PDF)
Affiche/Application en français: cliquer ici pour obtenir de plus amples renseignements!
Deadline: April 30, 2020
AMELIA EARHART FELLOWSHIP
(closed to applications on Nov 15, 2019)
What is the fellowship?
Globally, women make up around 25 percent of the workforce in the aerospace industry. In an effort to carry out its mission that women have access to all resources and are represented in decision-making positions on an equal basis with men, Zonta International offers the Amelia Earhart Fellowship.
The Amelia Earhart Fellowship was established in 1938 in honor of famed pilot and Zontian, Amelia Earhart.
What is the value of the award?
The US$10,000 Fellowship is awarded annually to up to 30 women pursuing Ph.D./doctoral degrees in aerospace engineering and space sciences. It may be used at any university or college offering accredited post-graduate courses and degrees in these fields.
Since the program’s inception in 1938, Zonta has awarded 1,603 Amelia Earhart Fellowships, totaling more than US$10.3 million, to 1,174 women representing 73 countries.
Our Fellows have gone on to become astronauts, aerospace engineers, astronomers, professors, geologists, business owners, heads of companies, even Secretary of the US Air Force.
Deadline: Closed.
WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY SCHOLARSHIP
No longer available*
*Please note: As a pilot program, the Women in Technology Scholarship was offered one time in 2019. The future of the program will be decided at the Zonta International Convention in July 2020. If the Scholarship does continue, we anticipate that the next round of scholarships will be awarded in 2021.
Scholarship description
The world economy, industry and sciences are becoming increasingly digitized, and these developments are disrupting society and familiar social processes. Women, however, are still largely underrepresented in technology fields. To create a world in which men and women have equal opportunities, women need to have an active role in technology and technological developments. Zonta International is pleased to offer its new Zonta International Women in Technology Scholarship to encourage women to pursue education, career opportunities and leadership roles in technology.
Funding
For the launch of this pilot program, the Zonta International Foundation awarded US$108,000 in scholarships: 30 district/region scholarships of US$2,000 each and six international scholarships of US$8,000 each.