The White House Historical Association, in partnership with Iowa State University’s Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication, has awarded junior Erik Anderson the Hugh S. Sidey Scholarship in Journalism. Anderson will receive a $5,000 scholarship and an invitation to visit Washington, D.C., where he will attend the exclusive White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) Dinner and be matched with esteemed mentors from the WHCA. Anderson will also be offered opportunities to network with journalists while in Washington, D.C. Previous recipients have attended White House press briefings and visited media organizations including POLITICO, The Washington Post and McClatchy News Service.
The scholarship, made possible through the generosity of David M. Rubenstein, honors the late Hugh S. Sidey, a native of Greenfield, Iowa, who covered 10 presidents over his 48-year career as a political correspondent, White House correspondent and bureau chief at TIME Magazine. He served for a decade on the Board of Directors at the White House Historical Association. Sidey’s daughter, the late Cindy Sidey Buck, was a longtime and beloved employee of the Association, serving in both the White House History Shop and on the Development team.
The Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication established the scholarship in 2006 at Iowa State University, Sidey’s alma mater. The award supports the school’s aspiring undergraduate journalists who exhibit extraordinary understanding of the role of covering the chief executive and the core principle of social responsibility that resides with journalists.
“Hugh Sidey spent decades covering the American presidency, adhering to the highest standards of journalism. Erik is now learning these very same standards at the Greenlee School, walking in Mr. Sidey’s footsteps through this opportunity,” said Dr. Matthew Costello, chief education officer and director of the David M. Rubenstein National Center for White House History. “The Association looks forward to welcoming him to Washington as part of our longstanding educational mission.”
“Awards are not given out lightly, and neither should they be accepted lightly. I am conscience of how big an honor this is,” said Anderson. “I am deeply grateful for the financial help, but even more, I am grateful for the chance to travel to our nation’s great capital and be among other journalists there.”
Anderson is a junior from Ames, Iowa, double majoring in journalism and mass communication and psychology. He is the opinion editor for the Iowa State Daily and writes weekly articles about culture, religion and literature.