Scholarships for Current Students
Students studying a major within the Watkins College of Art are eligible for a variety of scholarships and awards provided they maintain all academic requirements.
Walter and Sarah Knestrick Award
Eligible: Graduating Seniors
The Watkins College of Art seeks to compel its students to fulfill their creative explorations beyond their college experience. This year, the college will present the inaugural Walter and Sarah Knestrick Award to an eligible senior major student who proposes a plan to pursue an exceptional creative endeavor post-graduation. This $5,000 award can be used to carry out creative endeavors including studio art activity, research, design-based business, or arts-related community engagement project. Interested students must submit an application that includes a project proposal defining their creative goals beyond graduation and how they plan to use the funds. All proposals must be achievable in a one-year timeframe, and the winning student will be required to present the outcomes of their endeavor. More info…
Jeffery Buntin, Sr. Award for Creative Ventures
Eligible: All Watkins College of Art students
This award that will be given to Belmont students who are starting an enterprise at the intersection of the creative arts and business. Established by the Buntin family in Jeffrey, Sr.’s honor, this $150,000 endowed fund will support students from Belmont’s Jack C. Massey College of Business, Watkins College of Art and the O’More College of Architecture and Design.
The $5,000 award will be given annually through a competitive pitch process where the most creative new business idea with the highest potential for viability and long-term success will be selected. Participating students, who can be studying in undergraduate or graduate programs on campus, will pitch their ideas in a formal presentation to a panel of judges including local entrepreneurs, faculty members and representatives from the Buntin family.
T.A. Larkin Rising Sophomore Award
Eligible: Freshmen
Margaret A VanHatten Rising Junior Award
Eligible: Sophomores
Frank Russell Leu III Rising Senior Award
Eligible: Juniors
Friends of the Arts at Belmont Award
Eligible: All Watkins College of Art students
Marcene and Thomas Larkin Family Fund for Art Education
Eligible: Art Education students
Mai Cook Scholarship
Eligible: Sophomore or junior students studying Design Communications
Jane Ewing Cramer Award
Eligible: Art History students
Regen Design Innovation Award
Eligible: Design Communications and Experiential Design students