MSLIS student Victora Antwi is grateful for the financial support that she has received through the Balz Endowment Fund. An international student from the Mampong-Nsuta in the Ashanti Region, Ghana, Antwi earned her bachelor's degree in information studies in 2020 from the University of Ghana. She decided to pursue her master's degree to further explore the field and become better prepared to impact others. Since starting at the iSchool last fall, she has found the MSLIS program to be well structured.
"The classes are taught to prepare students for real professional work," said Antwi. "I have developed significant skills and completed a publication out of one of my research assignments for my Foundations of Media Literacy [IS 581] class."
Antwi holds an assistantship at the iSchool Help Desk, which provides technical support to the entire iSchool community, including on-campus and online students, faculty, and staff. Her interests include media and information literacy, library law and ethics, and youth and technology. She is working toward a bachelor's degree in law (LLB) from MountCrest University College in Ghana.
"The degree in law will help me navigate the legal aspects of the information that we encounter, especially the ones disseminated on social media, which basically address what legal implications exist in information use," said Antwi.
After graduating, Antwi hopes to continue her studies and earn a PhD in information science. Her short-term goal is to work in an academic library as a research and instruction librarian, and her long-term goal is to become a professor, researching and instructing in areas such as media and information literacy and digital youth and technology.
"My experience in the program has been great, from the seasoned professors who teach me to my advisors Talia Shaw and Kristina Intinarelli, the awesome Help Desk team, and the community of students I represent. The iSchool is my beloved school, and I join many others in ranking the MSLIS program as number one," she said.
Antwi is grateful for the financial support of Nancy (BA LAS '70, MSLIS '72) and Dan Balz (BS Media '68, MS Media '72), who established the endowment fund at the iSchool.
"Donating to the iSchool scholarship programs is a way of supporting dreams and promoting careers in information science. The generous support from Nancy and Dan Balz helps prepare information professionals who will advance the field and help make our digital environment safe," she said.