Beauty Changes Lives Vidal Sassoon Fall 2015 Scholarship Winners Announced

Wella’s Hairdressers at Heart and the Beauty Changes Lives Foundation are pleased to announce the winners of the Fall 2015 Vidal Sassoon Professional Beauty Education Scholarship Program. The nationwide competition awards 10 “Basic” scholarships covering 50% of tuition (up to $10,000) to students enrolled in a cosmetology program at an American Association of Cosmetology Schools member school. In addition, 10 licensed hairstylists are awarded continuing education scholarships to attend a North American Sassoon Academy, including travel and course fees up to $5,000.

A panel comprised of award-winning hairstylists, platform artists and educators selected the Fall 2015 recipients.

Winners of the “Basic” Vidal Sassoon Professional Beauty Education Program are noted below:

Morgan Barkdull

Olivia Carmichael

Mackenzie Cohen

Sarah Domonte

Joanna Hill

Rachel Pochedly

Vanessa Rivera

Lyttia Roseman

Jessica Walter

Leah Frisbee White

Winners of the “Advanced” Vidal Sassoon Professional Beauty Education Program and employers are as follows:

Rolando Aqui

Sophie Davies

Margarette Damms

Martin Huerta

Kristin Isaac

Jen Kohlenberger

Sonya Millner

Naomi Schumacher

Meghan Tomtas

Sumayah Wakely

The multi-year, $1.5M scholarship program honors beauty visionary and entrepreneur Vidal Sassoon’s lifelong passion for education. Several winners acknowledged how Sassoon’s legacy inspired their career and even their philosophy on life. “Vidal Sassoon brought hairdressing back to the basics – making hair low maintenance yet still modern and elegant. As a mother, I can appreciate the path he paved and incorporate his ideas into my own life and career,” wrote Leah White Frisbee in her scholarship application.

Advanced recipients also remarked on the role of mentors and industry leaders in shaping their career. “I had the opportunity to train with Nick Berardi and it was so inspiring. But I also find great insight from shows like Trend Vision that inspire me to take my career to the next level by applying for a Vidal Sassoon Academy experience,” says advanced winner Naomi Schumacher.

“Three years after his passing, Wella’s Hairdressers at Heart is pleased to see Vidal’s commitment to education live on through the Vidal Sassoon Professional Beauty Education Scholarship,” Wella North America CEO, Sal Mauceri notes. “Vidal transformed not just the art and science of hairstyling, but the world’s perception of hairstyling as a career. Many of the applicants in the scholarship competition shared how his artistic, entrepreneurial, and social vision inspired them to pursue a career in beauty.”

Beauty Changes Lives Foundation President Lynelle Lynch says the program provides an opportunity to elevate professional beauty careers at all levels of the industry. “For nearly three years, the Vidal Sassoon Professional Beauty Education Scholarship Program has been opening the door for those who want to join the professional industry and accelerating the careers of licensed professionals. It’s inspiring to see the boost this scholarship program offers to emerging and established artists,” says Lynch.

Since launching in 2013, the Vidal Sassoon Professional Beauty Education Scholarship Competition funded by Wella’s Hairdressers at Heart and administered by the Beauty Changes Lives Foundation has awarded 120 scholarships.

For more information on Basic and Advanced scholarships please visit: www.beautychangeslives.org and www.hairdressersatheart.com

About the Beauty Changes Lives Foundation: The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) created by the American Association of Cosmetology Schools to build awareness of the extraordinary career opportunities available in the beauty and wellness industry and massage therapy. The Foundation also organizes and participates in numerous philanthropic fundraisers that shine the spotlight on the charitable initiatives of the beauty and wellness community.

About Wella, the Salon Professional Division of P&G: Procter & Gamble serves nearly five billion people around the world with its brands. The Company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Always®, Ambi Pur®, Ariel®, Bounty®, Charmin®, Crest®, Dawn®, Downy®, Duracell®, Fairy®, Febreze®, Gain®, Gillette®, Head & Shoulders®, Lenor®, Olay®, Oral-B®, Pampers®, Pantene®, SK-II®, Tide®, Vicks®, Wella® and Whisper®. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 70 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About Sassoon Academy: Sassoon Academy offers its celebrated, industry-leading philosophy and courses worldwide through its renowned Academies, and instructional DVDs and books. All classes are developed and designed to be contemporary, relevant and forward thinking and are delivered with passion, commitment and technical excellence. The aim is to share the knowledge that is gained in the development of our craft and ensure that our students gain real commercial skills from our courses, as well as take away a piece of the culture that created Sassoon. To learn more about Sassoon Academy, visit www.sassoon.com or follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/SassoonAcademy, Twitter: twitter.com/SassoonAcademy and Instagram: @sassoonacademyofficial.