Cal State Fullerton Entertainment and Hospitality Management seniors Victoria Krivenkoff ’23 and Sydney Perez ’23 have received financial support for their studies with a scholarship established by alumna Sydney Russakov ’15. The award provides funding for students seeking careers in the music, movie, tourism or hospitality fields. 

Both 2022 recipients received scholarship awards totaling $3,000 each. 

“Receiving this scholarship allows me to become a member of various music industry organizations, such as EAMC, GrammyU, MPI SoCal and Cal State Fullerton clubs,” explains Krivenkoff. “It allowed me to take classes in summer 2022 to minimize my workload during fall and spring. Now, I can use more of my free time working toward professional goals and jobs!” 

Says Perez, “I plan to use this honor to help build myself as a worthy candidate for entry level jobs in the extremely competitive entertainment industry and hope to dedicate these funds to finishing my undergrad and independent certificate program with New York University, as well as opportunities, such as the casting apprenticeship program at Syracuse University to further my education.” 

Both recipients were tasked with writing a paper on how the award would support their journey toward working in their chosen field. The scholarship fund is named after a 2015 grad who held senior product management roles at LinkedIn before moving on to a product lead creation role at website builder Univer.se. 

Cal State Fullerton’s Entertainment and Hospitality Management program utilizes the university’s proximity to Disneyland and Hollywood, the expertise of the college’s entertainment and tourism faculty, and industry connections to ensure students are prepared for a strong start in this field. 

The program has a favorable reputation among prospective entertainment and hospitality students seeking to advance their future in Southern California. 

“Studying entertainment and hospitality management was why I chose CSUF over other Cal State schools. This program is unique in that it employs professors who have real-world experience in these industries and truly care to inform students about current trends/changes taking place. The students in the program come from very diverse backgrounds and interests. Because of this, I have made so many meaningful connections with my peers that I know will last into our careers,” Krivenkoff says. 

“EHM consists of an abundance of jobs based on an individual’s interests. Whether you plan to go into Esports, amusement parks, hospitality, music, etc., there is valuable information in every class pertaining to the concentration. So much of what we learn is seen throughout the industry as a whole!”