Simsbury Community Media Renames Scholarship After Local Journalist

SIMSBURY, CT — Simsbury Community Media has renamed its communications scholarship to honor Dominique Avery, recognizing her decades-long career in journalism and local community advocacy.

The $500 scholarship will be awarded to a student who demonstrates a commitment to ethical, fair, and locally focused reporting, according to an announcement released April 6.

Avery, a New York City native and graduate of Barnard College, began her career in the early 1970s as a reporter at WAVZ New Haven and WFSB Hartford.

She worked at a time when few women were employed in newsrooms and was later recognized among Connecticut’s top reporters for her emphasis on transparency, relationship-building, and local coverage.

She went on to serve as program director for Connecticut Network (CT-N) and as a board member of Simsbury Community Media, then known as SCTV, where she helped develop local programming.

“SCM is proud to honor Dominique Avery’s decades-long dedication to bringing news to Connecticut,” said Donald Colantonio, president of SCM’s board of directors. “We are so fortunate that much of Dominique’s work has benefitted Simsbury, and we are eager to provide a resource for a student following her lead.”

Beyond journalism, Avery led the 1995 effort to renovate the Old Drake Hill Bridge, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The project resulted in the Bridge of Flowers, now a popular destination for visitors, weddings, and cyclists.

In 2014, she was named a Simsbury Hometown Hero by the Simsbury Board of Selectmen, recognizing her volunteer service and community leadership.

Simsbury Community Media, a nonprofit public access station serving the town since 1984, said the renamed scholarship aims to encourage the next generation of local journalists to follow Avery’s example.