CANYON, Texas — Four West Texas A&M University students not only had fun on their holiday break. They also earned a total of $3,000 in scholarship money, thanks to the University’s second Instagram contest.
Allyson Garcia, a sophomore communication disorders major from Lubbock, won for a photo she took with the superhero Frozone from “The Incredibles” while wearing a WT sweatshirt at Walt Disney World in Orlando.
Her photo—one of about 40 submissions—secured her the top prize of a $1,000 scholarship from the Office for Academic Affairs.
The five-week contest solicited photos from students taken over the winter break in December and early January. In all, more than $3,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded in the contest.
“This contest is a fun way to stay connected with our students, even over the holiday break. We get to see the exciting places they are visiting as well as seeing them share their pride in WT,” said Dr. Amy Andersen, associate provost. “We get a glimpse of the broader life of our students beyond the University setting while they are away.”
Four photos were chosen weekly based on engagement and shared to an Instagram story with a 24-hour poll. Voters chose their favorites, and winners received their choice of a maroon or gray WT-branded backpack. Other prizes included WT-branded shirts, tumblers and stickers.
On Jan. 16, all of the submitted photos were judged by a committee of Academic Affairs staff members, who chose the top four scholarship winners.
Second place went to Aditya Jagdale, a graduate student in computer information systems and business analytics from Pune, India, for his photo in a WT zip-up jacket in New York City. He won a $750 scholarship.
Third-place winner was Brenlea Broyles, a freshman animal science major from Spring Branch, for a photo of her flashing the Buff hand sign at Niagra Falls. She won a $500 scholarship.
And fourth place went to Maddox Nite, a freshman digital communication and media major from Amarillo, for his leaping portrait in front of Cinderella’s Castle at Disney World while wearing a WT T-shirt and flashing two Buff hand signs. He won a $350 scholarship.
To enter the contest, students submitted photos of themselves wearing or holding WT gear that clearly showed the logo and tagged the WT Instagram account (@wtamu).
To view all of the submitted photos, visit the WT Instagram account.
The scholarship contest helps lessen students’ financial burden so they can focus on succeeding inside and outside the classroom, as laid out in the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.
That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised more than $150 million.
