Reporter Sierra Jenkins, who was shot and killed in March while leaving a Norfolk pizza restaurant, will live on in a college scholarship for future journalists.

The Virginia Press Foundation, the charitable arm of the Virginia Press Association, has announced the creation of the Sierra Jenkins Scholarship Fund in partnership with the Hampton Roads Community Foundation.

At the time of her death, Ms. Jenkins, 25, was an education reporter for the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot and the Newport News Daily Press. During her brief career, she also worked for CNN and Atlanta Magazine.

“Sierra was all the things you look for in a journalist — curious, energetic, smart, driven,” said Kris Worrell, editor of The Virginian-Pilot and The Daily Press and a VPA and VPF board member. “She loved being an education reporter for her hometown newspaper, and people trusted her.”

According to the Virginia Press Foundation, the one-time scholarships named for her will be available to any Virginia high school graduate pursuing a degree in journalism or communications at a four-year college or university in the state.

The new Jenkins fund will begin accepting student applications in December, with the first awards to be made for the 2023-24 school year, according to the announcement. The scholarship fund is currently accepting donations.

“The Virginia Press Foundation’s mission is to provide training and resources for student journalists,” Anne Adams, president of the nonprofit’s board, stated in the announcement. “This scholarship fits directly with our mission and helps students further their education in our incredibly important field.”

HRCF President Deborah DiCroce said the scholarship fund that the organization will administer “will keep Sierra’s memory and passion alive by supporting students who believe in the power of journalism to inform, enlighten and inspire, as she did.”

For more information, visit https://www.vpa.net/articles/scholarship-established-in-memory-of-norfolk-journalist/