IESNYC Announces Courtney Francis and Yun-Hsuan Tsai as the 2023 Merit Scholarship Recipients

The IESNYC is proud to announce that Courtney Francis and Yun-Hsuan Tsai have been selected as the recipients of the 2023 IESNYC Merit Scholarship. This year's selection process was highly competitive, with two exceptional candidates. As a result, the committee made the rare decision to award two recipients, supporting each of them financially with a $12,500 Merit Scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to full-time, graduate degree candidates in architectural lighting, enrolled in an accredited college or university in New York State. 

The two outstanding recipients share a common passion for architectural lighting and energy and despite coming from different backgrounds, they have been united by their desire to expand their knowledge and skills in the lighting field and contribute to its growth.

Courtney Francis is currently a candidate in the Master of Professional Studies in Lighting Design program at the New York School of Interior Design (NYSID). Pursuing a degree in this field she sees as an opportunity to broaden her perspective, learn about new technologies and techniques that could be applied to her work, and strive towards her long-term professional goal of educating others and sharing her knowledge and expertise.

“Being chosen as a recipient of the IESNYC Merit Scholarship to support my studies at NYSID is an immense honor, and I am incredibility grateful for this opportunity. It's inspiring to be part of a community that values education and invests in the growth of its members,” Francis states.

Courtney is a skilled lighting designer currently working at ILC Studios. She started her career in lighting design at MODUS Engineering and Trivalent Lighting Studios in Iowa after obtaining a BFA in Interior Design from Iowa State University in 2015. At RDG Planning & Design, she honed her expertise and developed a keen eye for detail in lighting design. Currently, she is pursuing her Master of Professional Studies in Lighting Design from the New York School of Interior Design while working remotely from her home in Wisconsin. Courtney is passionate about creating lighting systems that enhance and complement the built environment.

“Courtney brings polish and professionalism to every project at NYSID. Her designs have exhibited strong lighting choices, supported by sections and mounting details, incredible renderings, and visualizations,” says Shaun Fillion, LC, Educator IALD, MIES, Program Director | MPS-L Lighting. “She presents with a narrative style that is professional and client ready. She is confident in her skills, specific in her design choices, and if she keeps this up will doubtless receive Illumination and Lumen awards in the future.” 

Yun-Hsuan Tsai, enrolled in the Master of Fine Arts Lighting Design program at Parsons, was inspired to pursue her studies in architectural lighting and energy due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I realized the importance of the home environment and wanted to enhance people's quality of life through my design,” says Tsai.

She has demonstrated her leadership skills through her ability to cohere a community to strive for a mutual goal. Tsai plans to gather students from the lighting community and related fields to discuss critical issues and maximize the impact and potential of architectural lighting and energy.

Yun-Hsuan Tsai began her lighting design journey in theater and graduated from the department of Drama and Theater at the National Taiwan University in Taiwan. Joining the MFA lighting design program at the Parsons School of Design in 2022, she is now a New York-based lighting designer with extensive experience in architectural, theatrical, exhibition, and photography lighting design projects. As a creator and designer with an interdisciplinary background in art, literature, and sociology, she is dedicated to integrating humanistic care and aesthetic pursuit into her works.

“As a double major student in lighting design and interior design, Yun-Hsuan embodies one of the principal emphases of the Parsons lighting design program – interdisciplinarity,” says Craig Bernecker, Professor of Lighting Design and Director of the MFA Lighting Design program at Parsons School of Design. “Moreover, her experience as a theatrical lighting designer during the pandemic ultimately led her to address issues of sustainability, equity and social justice in lighting design, other principles close to the Parsons lighting program.  As such, Yun-Hsuan is an ideal representative of the lighting program and will be an ideal contributor to the lighting profession in New York and beyond.” 

About the IESNYC Scholarship
To recognize and support potential future leaders in the field of architectural lighting, The New York City Section of the Illuminating Engineering Society will award a merit‐based, single‐year scholarship with a monetary value of $25,000. The scholarship review panel reserves the option to divide the award into a maximum of two equal parts, should they conclude there are two candidates who are equally deserving.

Eligibility
1. Applicant must be a permanent resident of the United States, or holder of a US Student F-1 Visa.
2. Applicant must be currently enrolled in their first year of a lighting program in a full‐time graduate program as a degree candidate in the field of architectural lighting, at an accredited college/university in New York State.

Selection and Notification
The final selection will be judged anonymously by the scholarship review panel. Their decision shall be final. The committee will not return submitted essays or materials.

Deadline
Online application is now closed.

Application Requirements
Full online application must be submitted by due dates announced and include the following:

• Contact Information, Current School and Degree Program Information, and US Resident Status
• An Uploaded Essay (refer to below for additional information)
• Letter of Recommendation: Applicant must also request a “Letter of Recommendation” written by a professional administrator who has supervised the applicant in a practical or work-related position. Letter should include a response to the following question: "Why do you believe this candidate has strong leadership potential?" Letter of Recommendation must be emailed directly from the professional administrator to [email protected] by due dates announced. Recommendations forwarded from the applicant will not be considered.

Essay
Essay must be uploaded as part of the online application (in PDF format, and no more than two pages, max 10MB). When composing the essay, the following questions should be considered:

1. What inspired you to pursue your studies in the field of architectural lighting and energy?
2. What does leadership mean to you and how have you demonstrated leadership amongst your peers or community?
3. How do you think that receiving the IESNYC Merit Scholarship, and the associated benefits, will enhance your pursuit of a career in the architectural lighting field?
4. Why do you believe you are a candidate for the IESNYC Merit Scholarship?