Delta State University and Delta Music Institute artist-in-residence Steve Azar have announced the establishment of the Steve Azar St. Cecilia Foundation Scholarship Fund in the amount of $25,000 to benefit selected Delta State students in a unique partnership between the Delta Music Institute from the College of Arts & Sciences and the Center for Entrepreneurship from the College of Business. The scholarship fund will also offer a $1000 scholarship for qualified students from each of the ten high schools in Washington County as directed by Azar, a native of Greenville, Mississippi.
Dr. Cooper Johnson, Chair of Entrepreneurship in Business Technology and Professor of Management explains, "The Steve Azar St. Cecilia Foundation’s generous donation provides Delta State with much needed scholarship funds to assist musically gifted students to pursue their dreams of continuing their education. Furthermore, the Foundation’s gift has allowed for the introduction of a unique partnership of the DMI and College of Business in which students from both will work together to better understand the amazing business opportunities music has for those who dream big and seek to bring their creative talents to a larger audience."
Student partners selected for this creative cooperative will receive a stipend during the spring semester and each team will work to complete a business plan based on a music industry related project. In addition, workshops, field trips, and expert presentations will be offered to student participants. The student teams will present their business plans to a panel of financial professionals at the end of the semester. One student plan will be selected to receive seed money from the Steve Azar St. Cecilia Foundation fund to launch their small business.
“The DMI is excited about collaborating with the College of Business in this interdisciplinary effort to benefit our students. It’s a ‘win-win’ when different departments and colleges can work together in offering new ways of learning to our students. That makes for a very productive campus environment,” says DMI Director Tricia Walker. Walker adds, “Through the generosity of Steve and the St. Cecilia Foundation, these students will be offered a unique project-based learning opportunity. You can’t beat that for an educational experience.”
"Anytime my friends of the DSU Business School and DMI get together, great things can happen. My wife Gwen and I, along with our foundation board are thrilled to be a part of something that we feel will be impactful to the students from both departments. Working as a team…on a dream. Now that’s pretty cool!
We’d like to thank Tricia Walker, Cooper Johnson, Jamye Long and their respective staffs for their creative forward thinking and putting our donation to the best use possible."
The Delta Music Institute is an independent center of study under the College of Arts & Sciences at Delta State University, offering a B.S. in Music Industry Studies degree. The focus of the DMI is to provide students with a broad and thorough education in the technological, creative, and business areas of the music and entertainment industry. The Office of Entrepreneurship in Business Technology’s mission is to assist entrepreneurs, small business owners/managers, educators, students, and people seeking to start their own business in gathering information to reach their goals. For information, contact (662) 846-4579 or visit http://dmi.deltastate.edu.
