The Community Foundation for Mississippi is proud to announce the 2022 recipient of the Bill Hunsberger Scholarship is Mia Robertson of Starkville. Mia Robertson is a Senior Presidential-Endowed Scholar and John C. Stennis Scholar majoring in Political Science and Philosophy with minors in Pre-Law and International Relations at Mississippi State.
The Bill Hunsberger Scholarship Fund at the Community Foundation for Mississippi honors Bill Hunsberger, publisher of The Clarion-Ledger newspaper and a board member of the Community Foundation for Mississippi, who died suddenly of a heart attack in 2004. In his honor, his family and friends established the Bill Hunsberger Scholarship Fund at CFM, which provides scholarships to students studying the programs at the universities attended by his three daughters. Eligibility includes full-time female students entering her junior or senior year of undergraduate study. Awards are rotated annually between a journalism major at the University of Southern Mississippi, a journalism major at the University of Mississippi and a political science major at Mississippi State University with media involvement.
Currently, Mia works as a law clerk at Winfield Law Firm, a civil practice with a focus in chancery matters. Her passion for criminal justice has also led her to work as a legal intern with The Mississippi Bail Project, Fredericksburg Office of the Public Defender and New Orleans Office of the Public Defender. Mia also previously served as a Speech and Debate Program Assistant for the Stennis Center for Public Service and used this position to expand access to speech and debate to underserved school districts. At the Stennis Center, Mia also worked as the Junior Editor of the Public Service Review, a quarterly journal highlighting the contributions of young public servants.
Mia is the Founder and President of BARS, an MSU student organization dedicated to service and activism on behalf of the incarcerated. In the MSU Student Association, Mia serves as a Justice on the Judicial Council and previously served for two years as the Director of Community and Governmental Relations where she coordinated voter registration drives on MSU’s campus. Mia also serves as the President of the MSU Speech and Debate Council, a team she has participated in for four years. During her time on the collegiate Speech and Debate circuit, Mia has earned seven national championships in IPDA Debate, making her MSU’s first national champion in Speech and Debate. Mia is also a Regional Champion in Persuasive Speaking and Team IPDA Debate.