​​ ASU Graduate Anchors Prestigious MFA Scholarship Opportunity

By Hazel Scott/ ASU

Alabama State University recent graduate Jamie Harris has been offered an unprecedented full ride into Washington University’s (WU) Master of Fine Arts program as a Sam Fox Ambassadors Fellow.

Harris is the first  ASU visual arts student to be accepted into the paid fellowship program. WU has one of the most prestigious art schools in the country.

“I feel so honored to be accepted into this distinguished program,” Harris stated.  “One of my mentors, Elona Hagler, was a key inspiration for reaching this profound opportunity.”

Through this program, the WU Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts awards 10 full-tuition scholarships each year to top art and architecture students from across the United States for graduate study. Fellows also receive a travel stipend to support individual research or school-related travel.

“I will be pursuing an MFA in studio art with an interdisciplinary practice in paint and clay,” Harris said.  "I  paint, draw, do ceramics and I’m trying to do sculpture. I have two family members who attended Washington University and they said it’s very hard to get into the institution’s MFA program. So, I’m elated to be going in August.”

Harris said the program offers the opportunity to travel and work with galleries in the United States and abroad, such as in New York and Berlin.

For now, the young artist is looking to get her artwork out into the world through an upcoming art show.

“I’m currently prepping for an art show in Atlanta in August,” she said. "The annual art show is called ARTiculate Atlanta. I will be the only artist (there) who is showing from Alabama.”

Aside from being accepted at WU, Harris also received full scholarships to attend the MFA programs at  Pennsylvania  State University and  Georgia State University.

 “I am grateful for the opportunities. It was a very tough decision, but I look forward to delving within Washington’s  prolific research curriculum.”