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Sociology

Student Scholarship Opportunities

FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID

FAFSA Priority Deadline - March 2nd is the annual priority deadline to submit your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Applications submitted before the deadline receive priority consideration for programs with limited aid. You can still submit your application after the deadline. 

Complete the FAFSA Form

CALIFORNIA STUDENT AID COMMISSION (CSAC)

The California Student Aid Commission (or CSAC) adminsters a variety of financial aid programs, including the Cal Grant Programs, the California Chafee Grant for Foster Youth, the Middle Class Scholarship (MCS), and the California Dream Act Service Incentive Grant Program. 

You won't be eligible for the money unless you fill out the application and meet the March 2 deadline.

Check out the CSAC Website

FRESNO STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIPS

Fresno State awards over a thousand scholarships totaling more than 4.3 million dollars in free money to incoming and continuing students.  Scholarships are offered by various colleges, departments, and organizations to students who meet specific criteria. Regardless of your accomplishments, interests, background, we encourage all students to apply for scholarships.

The scholarship application period for Fresno State starts October 1, 2023 and ends on March 2, 2024. This application period is for current year scholarship opportunities that may become available during the 2023/2024 academic year as well as for future scholarship opportunities for the 2024/2025 academic year.

Fresno State Scholarship Application

SOCIOLOGY DEPARTMENT AWARDS

JESSE L. RUSHING was born in Blytheville, Arkansas on January 9, 1953 to Jesse and Latonia Rushing and lived his very early years in Missouri. His family and he moved to Central California and were farmworkers during the early years of his life. His parents, wanting to improve themselves, both went to school to become certified to work in the state hospitals as psych techs and raised their children in Porterville. Jesse was the eldest and only son of four children. He loved playing drums in the school band as well as playing basketball and baseball. He was a very good pitcher and was scouted by the pros during his high school career. He went onto USC on a baseball scholarship but soon found his interest in sociology and religioncourses. After dropping out of USC, he worked a variety of jobs, married Marjorie Coots, and went to work as an eligibility case worker for Tulare Co. Dept. of Social Services. He decided to return to school to earn a degree in social work to advance in the field. After entering Fresno State, he decided his real interest was in sociology, especially criminology and religion. He finished his BA and was thrilled to be accepted to the graduate program at University of Washington where he worked as a research assistant with Dr. Joe Weiss, Dr. Rodney Stark, & Dr. Daniel Doyle with whom he published, posthumously, the research paper “Beyond Durkheim: Religion & Suicide” in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion (1983, 22(2):120-131). During finals week of his first semester of graduate school, Jesse suffered a brain aneurysm and, after surgery and being in a coma for several days, died on December 17, 1979 at the age of 26. Dr. Joel Best, chair of the sociology department of Fresno State (1978-88), was instrumental in establishing the Jesse L. Rushing Scholarship Award, funded by donations from sociology faculty.  Nearly every year, a cash award is presented to an outstanding sociology student who is aspiring towards a doctoral program. 

Jesse L. Rushing Award Winners
Year First Name Last Name Graduate Degree
1981 Linnea Naley  
1982 Beverly Smith  
1983 Anne Brockley  
1985 Judith Wasson  
1986 Jennu Rodriguez  
1987 Barbara Pia  
1988 Franklin Barker  
1989 Ginger Rainey  
1990 Kim Sweeney Ph.D.
1991 Matthew Jendian Ph.D. in Sociology, University of Southern California
1992 Melissa Riba  
1993 Nancy Gutierrez M.A. in Sociology, University of Wisconsin
1994 Lisa Elliott  
1995 Michael Carley M.A. in Sociology, Stanford University
1996 Zebedee Fuller  
1998 Bertha Dominguez M.S. in Counseling, Fresno State
1999 Laura Guske  
2000 Sandra Stephenson M.A., UC Davis
2001 Maria Magana Ph.D. in Anthropology, University of Chicago
2002 Ashley Howard  
2003 Janice Brown M.A. in Rehabilitation Counseling, Fresno State
2004 Henry Giron  
2005 Kristine Frost M.S. in Counseling, Fresno State
2006 Tania Pacheco Ph.D. in Sociology, UC San Francisco
2007 Melanie Hatfield  
2008 Janine Nkosi

M.S. in Counseling; Ed.D., Fresno State

M.A., Sociology & M.A., Mexican American Studies, San Jose State

2009 Luis Morales M.A. in Criminology, Fresno State
2010 Jaime Garcia  
2011 Estela Acebedo MSW, Fresno State
2012 Gurinder Sangha M.S. in Counseling, Fresno State
2012-13 Millie Medina M.A. in Educational Leadership & Administration, Fresno State
2013 Maria Ortega Ph.D. Student in Sociology, Brown University
2014 Victor Cuevas  
2015 Jamaica Gentry  
2016 Carlos Jimenez M.A. in Sociology, CSU Fullerton
2017 Alejandra Rodriguez Perez MSW, Fresno State
2018 Khoi Quach Ph.D. Student in Sociology, UC Berkeley
2019 Selena Plancarte-Arizmendi  
2020      
2021      
2022 Paola Ferreyra  
2023      

The following graduating seniors were selected by the Sociology Department as the Outstanding Sociology Graduates. Students must have a major / double major in Sociology and a minimum overall GPA of 3.5. 
Outstanding Sociology Graduate
Year First Name Last Name Graduate Degree
2005 - 2006 Kellie Foster  
2006 - 2007 Melanie Hatfield  
2007 - 2008 Hagar Attia

M.A. in Communications, Fresno State

Ph.D. Student in Communications, University of Maryland (College Park)

2008 - 2009 Geneva Skram M.P.A., Fresno State
2009 - 2010 Brian Cortes M.A. in Communications, Fres
2010 - 2011 Matt Ford

M.A. in History, Fresno State

Ph.D. Student in History, State University of New York - Stony Brook

2011 - 2012 Silvia Espinosa  
2012 - 2013 Houa Vang

M.P.A, Fresno State

Ph.D. Student in Sociology, UC Merced 

2013 - 2014 Catherine Coppola  
2014 - 2015 Sarah Andrews  
2015 - 2016

Jamaica

Elba

Gentry

Scherer

 
2016 - 2017

Hannah

Cintia

Melissa

Poore

Quesada

Quesada

Ph.D. Program in Sociology, UC Davis

Ph.D. Program in Sociology, UC Merced

Ph.D. Program in Sociology, UC Merced

2017 - 2018

My Unah

Katherine

Her

Mize

 
2018 - 2019 Khoi Quach Ph.D. Program in Sociology, UC Berkeley
2019 - 2020      
2020 - 2021

Stephanie

Elexis

Ivone

Ramie

Andrea

Butler Sorsky

Cuen

Mendoza

Ortiz

Soto

 
2021 - 2022

Angel

Marissa

Guillen

Maline

 
2022 - 2023

Hope

Marcela

Adilene

Paige

Jay

True

Arambula

Leon

Tucker

Wiedenhoeft

 

Originally named the "Jean Miles Grant" Scholarship in 2005, this scholarship was renamed the Jean Miles and Clifford O. Grant Scholarship in 2014.  It is presented to a sociology major who will be returning for the fall semester and who has demonstrated outstanding progress towards the degree, including a minimum 3.5 GPA in the major and a minimum 3.0 GPA overall.
Jean Miles and Clifford O. Grand Award Winners
Year First Name Last Name Graduate Degree
2012 Hannah Andrews  
2013 Daisy Perez  
2014 Andrea Wilson  
2015 Austen Torrence  
2016 Nikesha Singleton  
2017 My Unah Her  
2017 Katherine Mize  
2017 Alejandra Rodriguez Perez MSW, Fresno State
2018 Jasmine Atkins  
2018 Roxanna Gallardo  
2018 Lindsey Machado  
2018 Khoi Quach Ph.D. Student in Sociology, UC Berkeley
2019 Selena Plancarte-Arizmendi  
2019 Stephanie Butler Sorsky  
2019 Leibnizth Martin Del Campo  
2019 Denise Rogers-Heydt  
2019 Alondra Zarate-Zavala  
2020      
2021      
2022

Paola

Citlalli

Ferreyra

Rendon

 
2023      

The Harvey Milk Award, a $2,000 scholarship, is presented annually to an outstanding scholar completing the Humanics Certificate at Fresno State through The Bulldog Pride Fund which was established in 2006 as an endowment under the auspices of the Fresno State Alumni Association. 
Harvey Milk Award Winners
Year First Name Last Name Graduate Degree
2012 - 2013 Michelle Henderson Swift  
2013 - 2014 Raven Kapphahn  
2014 - 2015 Raven Kapphahn  
2015 - 2016 Corrina Rubio  
2016 - 2017 Jessica Vierra  
2017 - 2018 Daniel Gonzalez  
2018 - 2019 Jasmine Atkins  
2019 - 2020 Gaonoucci Vang  
2020 - 2021      
2021 - 2022 Michael Dey  
2022 - 2023      

The Humanics Exemplar Award is presented annually to an outstanding graduate and alumnus/alumna who has completed the Humanics Certificate and/or Minor Degree in Philanthropic & Community-based Leadership at Fresno State.
Humanics Exemplar Award Winners
  Graduates   Alumni  
Year First Name Last Name First Name Last Name
2001

David

Karen

Aston

Schwarzenbach

   
2002

Ashley

Gabrielle

Howard

Kirkland

   
2003

Fabiola

Barbara

Valdez

Castleman

   
2004

Roberto

Wortham

Vaca

Briscoe

Ruth Obel-Jorgensen
2005

Sofia

Jane

Fellez-Huerta

Alvarado

Janice Brown
2006

Kate

Tania

Henry

Pacheco

Sofia Fellez-Huerta
2007

Leslie

Koua

Gacad

Cha

Ashley Howard
2008

Susan 

Kelvin

Vang

Alfaro

Kate Henry
2009

Quincy

Geneva

Ariz

Skram

Kelvin Alfaro
2010

Marla

Melissa

Hartman

Freeman

Kau Vue
2011

Elizabeth

Daniel

Kuykendall

Cisneros

Maggie Simms
2012

Barbara

Michelle

Beauchamp

Henderson Swift

Luis Castellanos
2013

Marcela

Millie

Neri

Medina

Coreen Campos
2014

Michelle

Song

Emily

Rodriguez

Vang

Hentschke

Vicente Perez
2015 Adrian Gomez Morghan V. Young-Alfaro
2016 Andrea Wilson Michelle Henderson Swift
2017

Cinthia 

Melissa

Quesada

Quesada

Millie Medina Melikian
2018 Yenedit Valencia Sarah Parkes
2019

Andrea

AubreyEnna

Adrianne

Ashley

Yer

Galdamez

Garten

Davis

Norton

Vang

Adrian Gomez
2020        
2021        
2022