Awards & Scholarships
Stay tuned for information on Spring 2024 Scholarships!
Please note that anyone may nominate someone or self-nominate for the following awards, as long as the potential recipient is eligible for that particular award.
Prism: the LGBTQ+ Staff, Faculty, and Graduate Student Association Awards
Champion of Our Community
The recipient of the Champion of Our Community award is an LGBTQ+ member of staff, faculty, or administration at UMD, who has made distinguished contributions to the LGBTQ+ communities.
Defender of Diversity
The recipient of the Defender of Diversity award is an ally to LGBTQ+ communities and a member of staff, faculty, or administration at UMD, who has made distinguished contributions to the LGBTQ+ communities.
LGBTQ+ Equity Center Awards
Graduate Student Involvement Award
The recipient of the Graduate Student Involvement Award is a graduate student at UMD who has been directly involved with LGBTQ+ communities at UMD.
Pride and Advocacy Award
The recipient of the Pride and Advocacy Award is someone who has demonstrated exceptional leadership during the past year resulting in a positive impact on UMD's campus LGBTQ+ communities. Recipients may be anyone, including undergraduate and graduate students, staff, faculty, administrators, and also alumni and friends of the campus.
Lavender Leadership Honor Society Recognitions
Rising Star
The recipient of a Rising Star is a first or second-year undergraduate student at UMD who has demonstrated a high level of participation/involvement in LGBTQ+ communities/initiatives on or off campus.
Special Recognition
The recipient of a Special Recognition is an undergraduate or graduate student at UMD, to recognize leadership over the past year in a particular area or project that impacts UMD campus LGBTQ+ issues/community.
President's Commission on LGBTQ+ Issues Award
Freedom & Liberation Medal
The recipient of the Freedom & Liberation Medal is an individual who is deserving special recognition by reason of their outstanding contributions to and/or advancement of LGBTQ+ communities on campus or beyond, evaluated comprehensively based on their entire portfolio of work over time, considering the impact, sustainability, and innovativeness of their contributions. This is the highest honor of the Commission. This award is given in exceptional circumstances and is not awarded every year.
Scholarships
The Dr. Luke S. Jensen Scholarship is financed by the LGBT Scholarship Fund and administered by the LGBTQ+ Equity Center. Recipients must be full-time students at the University of Maryland, College Park, who have demonstrated a commitment to promoting civil rights for and preventing discrimination against LGBTQ+ people. In June, a call for applications is issued by the Office of Student Financial Aid and the LGBTQ+ Equity Center. Awards are determined and awarded for the fall semester. Applicants must submit a short statement (maximum of 2 pages, double spaced) outlining their qualifications for the scholarship. They must also submit an unofficial transcript and at least one letter of recommendation. Further instructions on how to apply are included in the call for applications. The number of awards and the precise amount depend on the available assets in the endowment. In recent years, the typical scholarship award amount has been $1,500.