Graham Kapadia

Name: Graham Kapadia

Currently Enrolled (2018): Appomattox Regional Governor’s School for the Arts and Technology

About Winning: 

“Winning this scholarship means everything to me. Over the past 4 years, I have worked tirelessly at my education and my art, and I deeply appreciate receiving this scholarship because it serves to recognize these things. It will influence my education by reminding me that there is a group of people that believe in me and the things I am going to do, as well as lessening the financial burden of student debt. With the support of this scholarship, I am going to attend Virginia Commonwealth University/VCUarts, and double major in Film and Philosophy, and eventually enter a career in the filmmaking industry. Thank you Tronfeld, West & Durrett!”

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKKiA3NrAjQ

Essay:

Everyone deserves to be able to creatively express themselves and make art, which is why I want to pursue a career in art education. Throughout high school, I couldn’t settle on where my passion was. Senior year, however, I took Painting, and realized that the thing I was most passionate about was making art – something I forgot from my childhood, which I spent creating original short films. I plan to major in Film and Philosophy at VCUarts in the Fall.
With my education, I want to help people to uncover their passions the same way I did. My high school Painting teacher was instrumental in my decision to apply to art school, and has inspired me to become an art educator. Therefore, I plan to teach film at the high school level, as I feel like you can make the most difference in someone’s life when their minds are still growing and evolving.
Later, I plan to create a nonprofit that helps the homeless community through art classes and galleries to display and sell works. This program would help them to get on their feet by giving them the resources to pursue art careers.
But, setting up a nonprofit can be a long and difficult process. To aid this process, I plan to take business economics classes in college. By being proactive and keeping my end goal in mind, I hope to make a difference to the people in my community.
However, the cost of college is rising, and my financial future is uncertain. I am passionate about pursuing this route, and I don’t want money to stand between me, and making a difference in my community. Therefore, this scholarship would be an investment in my future, and would help me lessen my burden of paying for college.