School of Communication awards new scholarship established in memory of Marc Henry Simon

A new scholarship established in honor of alumnus Marc Henry Simon was announced and awarded at the 2015 WMU School of Communication Lambda Pi Eta scholarship award ceremony, which took place on March 27, 2015.

Simon earned a bachelor's degree from the School of Communication in 2011.  Following his passing in 2013, the Marc Henry Simon Memorial Scholarship was established by his family and friends to honor the memory of Simon, who is remembered by those who knew him in the school and outside the university as curious, attentive, motivated, intelligent and kind.

"Marc was a person you knew would be fun to watch because of all that he would achieve professionally and personally," said Dr. Leigh Ford, school director, at the award ceremony. "Marc’s family and friends describe him as accepting everyone for exactly who they were and for encouraging family, friends, or even someone he just met, to accomplish their goals and chase their dreams."

Simon's mother Betty Simon, his brother Stephen, his sister Nora, and many of his friends attended the ceremony. The name of the recipient was kept secret until the presentation, when it was announced that J. Gabriel Ware had been selected to receive the $1,000 scholarship.

Ware, who was attending the ceremony as one of the two recipients of the Peter and Laurel Northouse Scholarship, said he was caught completely off guard when his name was announced.

"It was shocking, because I haven’t even been here two semesters, so it just felt weird to me that of all these people in the communication program, I won," he said. "It really helped my confidence. Even though I graduated from Wayne County Community College District with a 4.0, everyone said I would have to step-up my game at the university, so for me to come here and get this award, it makes me feel like I belong here."

Read about the Lambda Pi Eta ceremony and who won 2015-16 school scholarships.