Four EKU students and an incoming freshman have received journalism scholarships at Eastern Kentucky University.

The awards were made possible by a $25,000 endowment from 1994 EKU journalism graduate Chryssa Zizos. Zizos, founder and president of Livewire Media Relations in Washington, D.C., established the Andreas and Poppy Zizos Journalism Award to honor her parents and the Libby Fraas Journalism Award to honor long-time journalism professor and Eastern Progress Adviser Dr. Libby Fraas.

Zizos' donation was designed to help outstanding students pursue their education while working for the award-winning Progress weekly and in professional internships.

Receiving the $1,500 Zizos Award, given to outstanding freshmen and sophomores, were Cassondra Kirby, a freshman from Hindman, who has served this year as assistant sports editor for the Progress, and Cindy Held, an incoming freshman from Madison Central High School, where she has been active in media.

Recipients of the $1,500 Fraas Award, given to outstanding juniors and seniors, are Jennifer Rogers, a junior from Lancaster; Sarah Heaney, a senior from Stanford; and Jamie Vinson, a junior from Mt. Sterling.

Rogers is editor of the Progress and a member of the University's prestigious Honors Program. She interned last summer at the Danville Advocate-Messenger and will intern at the Paducah Sun this summer.

Heaney, also a member of the Honors Program and managing editor of the Progress, will intern at the Flemingsburg Gazette this summer as part of Kentucky Press Association's summer internship program.

Vinson has held internships at the Lexington Herald-Leader, the Winchester Sun and Mount Sterling Advocate and is president of the student chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists at Eastern.

Zizos arrived at EKU from Cleveland in 1990 on a field hockey scholarship. When the sport was discontinued, she joined the staff of Progress staff, eventually serving as sports editor. "I just absolutely love this school," she said when she established the scholarship fund. "I could be the poster child for Eastern."