2014 Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship Winner

Renee Faundo of the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, CA

April 24, 2014

The National Cartoonists Society Foundation (NCSF) is happy to announce the winner of the 2014 Jay Kennedy Memorial ScholarshipRenee Faundo.

Renee is a Character Animation major at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, CA. She was chosen from over 60 applicants for the award, which includes a $5,000 scholarship and a trip to the National Cartoonists Society’s Reuben Award Weekend in San Diego in May. The scholarship applicants submitted eight examples of their work along with an entry form that included short essays on their current and future plans in cartooning. Entries were judged by a jury of professional cartoonists who are members of the National Cartoonists Society Foundation.

In addition to her studies, Renee is active in the animation field, working on the short films “Nail’d” and “Tea Time,” interning at Pride Animation Studio, and volunteering for the CTN Animation Expo. She has won a Governor’s Medallion while participating in the California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA), a High School Television Award from the Emmy Foundation, and has been named a Merit Award Winner for Cinematic Arts by the YoungArts Foundation.

The Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship is an annual award established in memory of Jay Kennedy, the late King Features comics editor, from an initial grant from the Hearst Foundation/King Features Syndicate and additional generous donations from other prominent cartoonists. It is administered by the National Cartoonists Society Foundation. The scholarship is awarded to a college student in the United States, Canada or Mexico who will be in their Junior or Senior year of college during the following academic year, and is selected by a panel of professional cartoonists.