ASJA is thrilled to announce the 12 scholarship recipients for the 2026 conference, Freelancer’s Blueprint: Navigating a Shifting Landscape, April 20-24. The breadth of the political, social, environmental, cultural, and personal issues they cover is inspiring; they truly exemplify the future of freelancing.

“This scholarship to our annual conference is just one of the ways that ASJA fulfills its mission to welcome gifted writers from diverse backgrounds within our ranks,” said ASJA President Darcy Lewis. Scholarship winners have gone on to serve in our Executive Committee and Board,” “It is so exciting to see the caliber of this year’s winners, and we look forward to meeting them and supporting them in their journey as professional freelancers.”

ASJA conference scholarships are awarded annually to talented, up-and-coming freelance journalists and writers from marginalized groups who demonstrate potential and passion for storytelling.

2026 ASJA Conference Scholarship Recipients

Here are the 2026 scholarship recipients, along with some details about the work they shared in their applications:

• Tonya Abari, a Hermitage, Tennessee, journalist and essayist whose work appears in Essence, USA Today, Prism Reports, and more, covering maternal and reproductive health, environmental justice, and human-centered stories from marginalized communities.
• Lauren Abunassar, a Palestinian-American writer, poet, and journalist—and 2025 National Endowment for the Arts creative writing fellow—whose work centers immigrant communities, the arts, and stories at the fringes of mainstream media coverage.
• Giselle Greenwood, a Cypress, Texas, journalist and former editor in chief of the Houston Business Journal, who covers business and the overlooked physical and mental health experiences of peri-menopausal and menopausal women.
• Audrey Henderson, an Evanston, Illinois, journalist, ASJA professional member, and former contributing reporter for Canary Media who covers sustainability, arts and social policy, equity, and just transition.
• Kerry Halladay, a Denver, Colorado, agricultural journalist who covers the cutting edge science and nuanced realities of modern farming, fresh produce, water, and public lands policy.
• Jacqueline LeKachman, a New York City writer and ASJA professional member, whose essays on celibacy, sexual compliance, and consent have appeared in the Washington Post, HuffPost, Women’s Health, and The Guardian.
• Tasmiha Khan, a Bridgeview, Illinois, journalist and ASJA professional member who covers maternal mental health, Muslim-American families, and immigrant mothers navigating systems not built with them in mind. Her reporting has contributed to Illinois legislation and Medicaid advocacy.
• Leigh Morrison, a Lambertville, New Jersey, writer, gender studies scholar, and drag king performer who uses humor and humanizing storytelling to cover queer identities, culture, and social justice.
• Elissa Odeh, a Palestinian immigrant journalist based in the Greater Philadelphia area who covers communities shaped by conflict, displacement, and immigration, amplifying voices often reduced to headlines.
• Catherine Seiberling Pond, a Kentucky writer and farmer who covers rural life and is working on a memoir comparing her farm life in Kentucky with her grandparents’ “back to the land” odyssey in post-war New England.
• Mikaella Travis, a Charlotte, North Carolina, journalist who covers the environment, energy, and social justice through investigative and explanatory reporting that centers the communities most affected. Her work has appeared in E&E News by Politico, the Detroit Free Press, and PBS North Carolina.
• Gina Zammit, a Brooklyn, New York, food and travel writer whose work explores how food and place connect us to the world and to each other.

Scholarships cover the cost of attending the ASJA conference, where recipients can learn from industry experts, network with peers, and advance their careers.

In addition to offering scholarship recipients a chance to hone their craft, attending the conference provides them with the chance to connect with industry professionals and build relationships that can lead to future career opportunities.

ASJA’s DEAI Initiatives

Conference scholarships are one of several initiatives ASJA has embarked on to promote diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusivity within its membership and among freelance writers and nonfiction book authors in North America.

To fulfill its DEAI mission, ASJA maintains a standing DEAI Committee and supports an Ambassador Program that helps to unify DEAI best practices throughout its volunteer networks. The committee also holds monthly chats on DEAI topics, works to support the values of inclusion and diversity for all ASJA members up through its leadership ranks, and supports the annual conference scholarship.

This is the fifth year that ASJA has awarded scholarships to its annual conference as part of its goal to ensure that all independent nonfiction writers feel included, supported, and valued.

Please join ASJA in congratulating the 2026 conference scholarship recipients! We look forward to seeing the impact these writers will make, both during the conference and in their future careers.

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Olga Lucia Torres is an ASJA member and heads the 2026 conference scholarship committee. Her freelance work on health care, disability rights, and diversity issues has been published in the New York Times, New York Daily News, Next Avenue, and other publications. She attended her first ASJA conference in 2022 as a scholarship recipient.