Two Northwest Missouri State University students have been awarded American Advertising Federation of Kansas City (AAF-KC) scholarships for the 2019-2020 academic year.

The scholarship recipients, Allison Binder, a junior agriculture business major from Salisbury, Missouri, and Kia Jones, a senior interactive digital media visual imaging major from Fremont, Nebraska, receive AAF National and AAF-KC memberships, AAF-KC event admission, $1,500 toward school expenses and are partnered with a professional mentor in Kansas City as part of the award package.

“AAF-KC is really good at maximizing networking, so each person who wins the scholarship gets a mentor,” Jacquie Lamer, a Northwest senior instructor of mass media and AdInk co-advisor, said. “That’s priceless.”

With interests in advertising and agriculture, Binder is looking forward to learning how those interests align on a larger scale with her mentor from AdFarm, Matt Weeks.

Jones’ mentor is Northwest alumna Katie Pierce Frutiger, a 2011 graduate with degrees in psychology and interactive digital media with a new media emphasis. Frutiger is a senior user experience strategist at Intouch Solutions in Kansas City, Missouri.

“I’m very excited to work with her,” Jones said. “I think that’s the most exciting part about the scholarship. The money is great, but having somebody who can kind of guide you through your senior year, that’s what I’m really excited for.”

AAF-KC is a non-profit trade and professional association whose mission is to help future advertisers and marketers volunteer, network and learn the professional field. The AAF-KC has provided advertising students with scholarships through its foundation for more than 30 years.

AAF-KC offers scholarships to 19 colleges in Missouri. The AAF-KC Foundation Board, a diverse group of Kansas City industry leaders, reviews applicants and selects the scholarship recipients.

Jones is the co-president of AdInk, Northwest’s student advertising club. After completing an internship last summer in Maine at Eariously, a software company that allows users to listen to any digital text, she began a full-time position as a junior user experience and interface designer.

In addition to being a member of AdInk, Binder is the advertising manager for the Northwest Missourian, Northwest’s student-led newspaper, and a member of Collegiate Farm Bureau.

Both students appreciate the emphasis on profession-based learning at Northwest, especially the opportunities to network and work with clients in and out of the classroom. This scholarship gives them a confidence boost and affirms that Northwest was the right place to pursue their college degrees.

“I knew that if I wanted to get ahead and get a career going, this is where I needed to be,” Jones said.