2025 Scholarship Awards

Receiving the Ronny Tipps Scholarship in 2024 was such an amazing opportunity for me. I was able to attend the 2024 TAPIT Conference for free and also received a free TAPIT membership for a year. I rarely get opportunities like these. Being a single mom on government assistance has been difficult for me and my son. I have had some good memories and would be honored to count this as one of them. Having received this scholarship I was able to network, learn, and be a part of something bigger. The connections and resources I found were invaluable.

I would recommend that all new interpreters join TAPIT, and anyone applying for this scholarship, even if you did not win it, do not give up. There is help and opportunities for people like us or in similar circumstances. Never give up on your dreams. Be the representation you wished you had when you were younger.

This year, two new award winners were selected. Maria Rodriguez, from Chattanooga, won the 2025 Ronny Tipps Scholarship. She is juggling family life and study. She is taking remote Interpreting courses while getting an associates degree. She attended the TAPIT Conference 2025 in person, and even helped at registration. Cameron Schaffner, a student at ETSU, where Dr. Nelson was a professor for many years, received the 2025 Ardis Nelson Scholarship. Cameron attended the conference remotely (he was actually in Mexico) and even won a great door prize, tickets to Dollywood!