Danielle Schivek ’11 has been interested in fashion for as long as she can remember, but she never planned to be involved in the fashion industry. That, however, did not stop her from becoming one of three Brandeis seniors to win a prestigious fashion scholarship this year.

Schivek joined Abi Katznelson ’11 and Ji Yun Lee ’11 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York to be recognized at the annual Fashion Scholarship Fund (FSF) Geoffrey Beene National Scholarship Awards Dinner.

This is the first year Brandeis has participated in the scholarship competition, which is open to 32 schools invited by the Young Musicians and Artists (YMA) FSF. Schivek, Katznelson and Lee were among 100 scholars who received $5,000 scholarships.

Paul Rosengard ’80, chairman of YMA FSF was instrumental in extending the scholarship opportunity to Brandeis.

“As a proud alumnus, it is gratifying to me that three Brandeis students were selected as recipients the first year in which the university participated in this prestigious scholarship program,” Rosengard said. “This three-for-three first-year sweep has never happened before and is a testament to the strength of these outstanding candidates, each one richly deserving of this recognition.”

Each member school has a YMA FSF contact, and up to five students from each school may be invited to apply by completing a case study and an interview with a member of YMA FSF. Application for the scholarship is open to sophomores, juniors and seniors enrolled at one of the 32 member schools. To apply, students must be full-time students with a minimum GPA of 3.0.