Applications Now Open

Early Deadline

December 31, 2025

Early Submissions get 5 bonus points

Final Deadline

January 31, 2026

Apply Now

Now in its fifth year, the PRSA Chicago Michelle Flowers Diversity Fellowship Program is designed to attract, recruit and retain people of color to the practice of public relations and communications.

Ethan Chiu

2021 Fellow
Loyola University
Internship: Current Global

Zamzam Mohammad

2023 Fellow
Augustana College
Internship: Advocate Health

Alex Lopez

2024 Fellow
University of Illinois Chicago
Internship: Public Communications Inc.

Four Awards

$2,500*

As part of its ongoing commitment to foster the next generation of multicultural talent in the field of public relations and communications, PRSA Chicago awards four individual scholarships in the amount of $2,500 each year. Current freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and non-graduating seniors are eligible to apply.

The award also includes a summer internship at a Chicago agency or company affiliated with PRSA Chicago. Membership in the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) is preferred, but is not a requirement.

Chiamaka Okoli

2025 Fellow
University of Illinois Chicago
Internship: Rudd Resources

Esther Marcos

2022 Fellow
Loyola University
Internship: Flowers Communications Group

Application Details

A quick, interactive guide designed to help you understand the application process better and fill out the application form.

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet the following requirements:

Be registered as a full-time undergraduate student at an accredited four-year college or university in Illinois.
Be enrolled in public relations studies, journalism, communications or courses preparing for a career in public relations.
Be a current freshman, sophomore, junior, or non-graduating senior.
Have a minimum of 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale.
Race/ethnicity:
- African-American/Black
- Hispanic or Latina/o/x/e
- Arab/West Asian
- East & Southeast Asian
- South Asian
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
- Indigenous/Native American
- Two or More Races

Application

To apply for this award, submit the following:

A completed online application.
- Full name
- Race/ethnicity:
  - African-American/Black
  - Hispanic or Latina/o/x/e
  - Arab/West Asian
  - East & Southeast Asian
  - South Asian
  - Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
  - Indigenous/Native American
  - Two or More Races
- Gender
- Address
- Contact information: address, email, phone
- University name
- Major and minor
A 500-word essay that explains why the applicant feels they are a top candidate for the Michelle Flowers Diversity Fellowship and how they uplift Diversity and Inclusion within their university and among their peers.
A recommendation letter of no more than two pages from a faculty member or advisor.
An unofficial transcript of all college/university courses completed that clearly indicates current overall GPA. If you are a finalist, you will then be required to provide an official transcript to substantiate your GPA.

Applications submitted by the early deadline of December 31, 2025, will receive 5 bonus points. The official deadline for all applications is January 31, 2026.

Selection Criteria

Applications will be judged by members of PRSA Chicago, public relations educators and professionals using the following criteria:

Show writing skills as demonstrated throughout the application and essay.
Provide a recommendation letter.
Academic achievement in overall studies, with an emphasis on industry applicable courses.
Awards or honors received for academic or extracurricular achievements, with an emphasis on PR or communications recognition.

Applications submitted by the early deadline of December 31, 2025, will receive 5 bonus points.

Notification

Students will receive final notification by March 1, 2026, with awards distributed by April 30, 2026.
Internships will begin in June 2026.

Apply Now

The Importance of Diversity in PR

PRSA Chicago is committed to investing in the educational development of the next generation of multicultural PR professionals by providing financial assistance and employment opportunities.

According to the Diversity Action Alliance Race and Ethnicity in Public Relations and Communications Benchmark Annual Report, overall multicultural representation over a five-year period rose from 22% in January 2020 to 28% by January 2024. However, DAA says “the modest gains highlight persistent disparities, particularly in leadership, and reinforce the urgent need for structural change” within the communications industry.

The Diversity Fellowship Program will help attract and train more diverse professionals, creating a robust pipeline of new talent.

The Michelle Flowers Diversity Fellowship pays tribute to the meaningful contributions that she has made as a leading African-American pioneer in the PR industry, as well as her deep dedication to diversity for more than 30 years.

About Michelle Flowers

A visionary public relations and marketing entrepreneur, Michelle Flowers Welch is an award-winning expert in the field of multicultural communications. She founded Flowers Communications Group, one of the nation’s top multicultural integrated marketing agencies, in 1991. Her firm was named to Forbes America’s Best PR Agencies 2021 list. One of her firm’s core values is focused on cultivating the next generation of multicultural communications practitioners. In support of Flowers Welch’s lifelong commitment to diversity in the public relations industry, Flowers Communications Group is a founding sponsor of the PRSA Chicago Michelle Flowers Diversity Fellowship Program.

A strategic, innovative thought leader, Flowers Welch serves as a trusted senior counselor to clients and an inspiring mentor to young professionals. Before she discovered her love of agency life, her career included PR roles in corporate, nonprofit and government sectors. She began her career in agency public relations at Golin/Harris and later joined Burrell Communications Group to pursue her desire to work in ethnic marketing.

Flowers Welch holds a master’s degree in advertising from Northwestern University and is a magna cum laude graduate of Winston-Salem State University. Her firm has received more than 100 industry awards for communications excellence. A charter inductee into Northwestern University’s Medill Hall of Fame, Flowers Welch is the recipient of the Publicity Club of Chicago’s Lifetime Achievement Award, a member of the PR News Hall of Fame, and was named PRSA Chicago’s 2017 Distinguished Senior Leader.

In 2021, she was named as the PRSA Chicago Diversity & Inclusion Team Champion, as one of Chicago United’s Business Leaders of Color, among the PRNEWS Top Women in PR and to iHeartMedia’s Women Who WIN Class of 2021. Michelle was also inducted into the PR Week Hall of Fame.

Michelle was recognized with the 2022 Chicago Defender Lifetime Achievement Award and named the 2022 Plank Center Agency Mentor of the Year. Her firm received two prestigious awards – the 2022 PRSA Chicago Organization of the Year and the 2022 PRNews Platinum Award Medium Agency of the Year. She most recently was honored by the National A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum with the 2025 Gentle Warrior Award and honored by the Diversity Action Alliance as a 2025 Industry Legend.

About Michelle Flowers

A visionary public relations and marketing entrepreneur, Michelle Flowers Welch is an award-winning expert in the field of multicultural communications. She founded Flowers Communications Group, one of the nation’s top multicultural integrated marketing agencies, in 1991. Her firm was named to Forbes America’s Best PR Agencies 2021 list. One of her firm’s core values is focused on cultivating the next generation of multicultural communications practitioners. In support of Flowers Welch’s lifelong commitment to diversity in the public relations industry, Flowers Communications Group is a founding sponsor of the PRSA Chicago Michelle Flowers Diversity Fellowship Program.

A strategic, innovative thought leader, Flowers Welch serves as a trusted senior counselor to clients and an inspiring mentor to young professionals. Before she discovered her love of agency life, her career included PR roles in corporate, nonprofit and government sectors. She began her career in agency public relations at Golin/Harris and later joined Burrell Communications Group to pursue her desire to work in ethnic marketing.

Flowers Welch holds a master’s degree in advertising from Northwestern University and is a magna cum laude graduate of Winston-Salem State University. Her firm has received more than 100 industry awards for communications excellence. A charter inductee into Northwestern University’s Medill Hall of Fame, Flowers Welch is the recipient of the Publicity Club of Chicago’s Lifetime Achievement Award, a member of the PR News Hall of Fame, and was named PRSA Chicago’s 2017 Distinguished Senior Leader.

In 2021, she was named as the PRSA Chicago Diversity & Inclusion Team Champion, as one of Chicago United’s Business Leaders of Color, among the PRNEWS Top Women in PR and to iHeartMedia’s Women Who WIN Class of 2021. Michelle was also inducted into the PR Week Hall of Fame.

Michelle was recognized with the 2022 Chicago Defender Lifetime Achievement Award and named the 2022 Plank Center Agency Mentor of the Year. Her firm received two prestigious awards – the 2022 PRSA Chicago Organization of the Year and the 2022 PRNews Platinum Award Medium Agency of the Year. She most recently was honored by the National A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum with the 2025 Gentle Warrior Award and honored by the Diversity Action Alliance as a 2025 Industry Legend.