2026 Ryser Scholarship for Indiana High School Teachers

Applications for this year’s Ryser Scholarship are open now!

Some Indiana writers workshops to consider:

IU Writers Conference [Bloomington]
Indiana Writers’ Center, A Gathering of Writers [Indianapolis]
Midwest Writers Workshop [Ball State University, Muncie]
Writing for Your Life Spiritual Writers’ Conference [Indianapolis]
Women Writing for (a) Change workshops [Bloomington]

About The Ryser Scholarship

The Ryser Scholarship is offered annually by the Writers Guild at Bloomington to provide support for a writer from South Central Indiana to pursue excellence by attending a formal workshop in the craft of writing.

Open to writers of any experience level, the Ryser Scholarship rotates yearly between a high school student, a Language Arts teacher, and a Writer’s Guild member.

Joan Ryser, the scholarship namesake, taught American and European literature, creative writing, grammar, and composition at Bloomington High School South for 44 years, where she was a beloved mentor for budding writers and avid readers.

When Ryser passed away in 2017, she left instructions with her family that instead of flowers, memorial contributions be made to a local organization that promotes writing and literacy. The Writers Guild at Bloomington received the resulting donations and established the Writers Guild’s first scholarship award. The Writers Guild has set up a continuing plan for the award, committing 5% of all donations and event proceeds in order to create ongoing support for the scholarship.

Past Recipients

Anna Petro is the 2022 winner of the Ryser Scholarship.

She was a student in her first year at Bloomington High School North and chose to attend the IU Writers Conference. She shared a wonderful video about her experience here: 2022 Ryser Scholarship winner Anna Petro on the Writers Guild You Tube channel.