Four African American women who have forged successful careers in the entertainment industry — Felicia D. Henderson, Gina Prince‑Bythewood, Sara Finney-Johnson and Mara Brock Akil — have teamed up to help students in UCLA's School of Theater, Film and Television to do the same. With a $50,000 endowment, they have created the Four Sisters Scholarship in Screenwriting, Directing and Animation to support students doing projects that portray the African American experience.

"I feel that I've been incredibly blessed to have had the career I've had, and this is still only the beginning for me," said Henderson, who received her M.F.A. from UCLA in 2004 and who chaired the scholarship selection process. "A big part of my success is directly related to what I learned in UCLA's screenwriting program about telling stories."

Henderson is the creator and co-executive producer of Showtime's "Soul Food: The Series." She was a writer on the series "The Parkers," "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and "Family Matters," and she worked as a writer and producer on "Moesha," "Sister, Sister" and "Movie Star."

"I want to give back to the program that gave me so much," Henderson said. "I want to reach back and help students who need it so they can keep their dreams alive."

The first winner of the scholarship is Sylvia Terry (Los Angeles), a graduate student in the directing program.

"I feel extremely blessed to be the recipient of the first Four Sisters Scholarship," Terry said. "I admire the four women who created this award, so to receive their endorsement is an honor."

The foursome's decision to focus their support on students who explore the African American experience stemmed from the challenges they each have faced in finding such support. While African Americans watch more television than any other group, African Americans held only 83 of the 1,334 writing jobs at CBS, NBC, ABC, UPN, Fox and the WB during the 2001 prime-time season, according to a report by the Writer's Guild of America, West.

"I am extremely pleased that these four stellar professionals have decided to support our students," said Robert Rosen, dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. "We are very grateful for their generosity and commitment to UCLA."

"We would also like to encourage students, no matter what their ethnicities, to include people of color in their storytelling in significant ways," Henderson said.

Scholarship co-founder Prince-Bythewood, who graduated from UCLA with a B.A. in film in 1991, has worked extensively in the film industry. Listed among her many credits are producer of "Biker Boyz" and director and screenwriter of "Love and Basketball."

Finney-Johnson is a co-creator and executive producer of the NBC-TV series "The Parkers" and co-creator of "Moesha." She previously was a writer in the long-running sitcoms "Family Matters" and "Married With Children." A graduate of the University of Southern California, she also is an accomplished playwright, author of the critically acclaimed play "Mens." An evening of her one-act plays ran recently at the Zephyr Theater in Los Angeles.

Akil is the creator of UPN's "Girlfriends" and co-creator of "Moesha" and "The Parkers." Shortly after graduating from Northwestern University, she began her career as a writer on Fox's "South Central." She also served as producer on the WB Network's "The Jamie Foxx Show."

"UCLA film school helped me to re-create myself," Henderson said. "Maybe our scholarship will help someone else do the same."

-UCLA-

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