2026 Jackie Awosika Scholarship Contest Rules
All applicants must be current UAEA members, children/step-children/foster-children of UAEA members, or nieces and nephews of a UAEA member. Applicants must maintain their connection to UAEA, at minimum, up until the day the finalists are announced.
Applicants may be deemed ineligible if the UAEA connection either leaves UAEA or their employment with the City of Tempe between the time the application is submitted and the time the finalists are announced.
All applicants must be enrolled in an accredited college or trade school as of the time of the application.
UAEA will only consider complete applications. UAEA may reach out to the applicants to request materials if the original submission does not contain all necessary information, but we are not required to do so.
Complete applications will include answers to all of the background questions, up-to-date high school or college transcripts, and responses to at least 3 out of 5 questions.
There will be a total of 6 questions. Applicants will need to answer at least 3. Applicants may answer more but only 3 of their responses will be graded by the evaluation team.
What are you planning to study in college and why? Is there a career or interest you would like to pursue after completing your degree?
What do you plan to use the UAEA scholarship funds on? Will the UAEA Scholarship help you achieve some educational or career goal?
What is your favorite/are your favorite parts about living in Arizona? What do you think Arizona does better or has that other states can’t compare to?
You are either a member of UAEA or related to a member. Knowing what you know about our organization, what are some things you think the union should do in the next 10 years? Feel free to think outside the box - this response could include new perks for members, specific workplace conditions we should be advocating for, or even ways we can be more involved in the Arizonan community. If you need some insights into what we’re doing right now, check out uaeatempe.com.
Why do you think unions are important? Feel free to include perspectives about their importance to your family, to the Arizona community, the United States, or even the world.
How do you think AI technology will change the future of work? Is there a way to integrate AI technology into the workplace without causing massive layoffs and economic disruptions?
All application materials will be anonymized by the UAEA President and given to a panel of at least 3 board members. Each panelist will independently review the materials, fill out an evaluation rubric with their scores, and then return their final scores to the President. The President will de-anonymize the data, aggregate the scores, and present the final results to the panel for discussion.
AI programs should not be used for essays. Any essay written by AI will be disqualified. All content submitted should be the original work of the applicant.
UAEA allocates $2500 annually for the Jackie scholarship. The UAEA panel reserves the right to distribute these funds in whatever way they like, as long as the distribution is based upon the results of the final anonymized scores. Funds may be given to only one applicant if their application clearly stands out from the others, divided up in chunks between multiple applicants if there is a degree of separation in final scores, or evenly distributed between all applicants if the scores were roughly equivalent.
Funds will be distributed in the name of the UAEA member connected to the applicant. If a child/of a UAEA member wins the funds will be distributed in check form to their UAEA parent or legal guardian.
Applicants are evaluated primarily on the quality of their essays and responses to the application questions. Slight preference will be given to children and relatives of UAEA members, those who have never received funds from UAEA, and first-generation college students, but all applicants who meet the main criteria are encouraged to apply.