Dr. Lori DeWitt Memorial Scholarship

The Dr. Lori DeWitt Memorial Scholarship is awarded to a full-time student who is majoring in Communication within the Fulton School of Liberal Arts, and wishes to participate in a Salisbury University Study Abroad program or a domestic semester exchange program, and has financial need from FAFSA.

Dr. Lori J. DeWitt was a long-time member of the faculty of the Department of Communication. The daughter of two career educators, Dr. DeWitt’s career path inevitably took her into education. She began her career as a high school teacher in Southern California where she taught English, speech and debate, and coached the high school speech and debate team. She also taught special education and loved working with students with special needs. Dr. DeWitt briefly worked in the television media industry hosting a local cable home improvement show. Ultimately, she decided on a career in higher education and moved with her family in 2007 to Salisbury University where she joined the Department of Communication. She served on various department, school, and university committees and, by the time of her death, had just transitioned out as the chair of the department.

Dr. DeWitt had a passion for travel. She spent important years of her life on the West Coast, in the Midwest, and on the East Coast. She traveled with her family extensively throughout the U.S. While serving on the faculty at Salisbury University, she led multiple study abroad trips to both Guatemala and Scotland. Additionally, she and her husband presented at international professional conferences in The People’s Republic of China and explored setting up study abroad programs in England and Northern Ireland. Dr. DeWitt was very involved in her church and traveled on numerous mission trips to Peru and Macedonia.

The memorial scholarship in Dr. DeWitt’s name supports Salisbury University Communication majors with high financial need to embark on an academic exchange or travel program either abroad or in the USA as part of their college career. Dr. Dewitt knew the educational benefit of travel and wanted as many students as possible to participate in these programs. Scholarship recipients are determined by a combination of GPA (3.0 min cumulative GPA), application essay, and demonstrated financial need. Winners will receive a scholarship up to $1,000 which is applied to any study abroad or study away program approved by the Janet Dudley-Eshbach Center for International Education at Salisbury University. Applications are due by May 1 for the following fall, winter, spring or summer.