Established by alumna Tiffany Yvonne Cox ’07, the annual $5,000 scholarship will be awarded to a Theatre Arts major who is also an active member of Catawba’s Black Student Union. The scholarship reflects Cox’s commitment to access, opportunity, and the transformative power of the arts — values that shaped her own journey as a student and professional artist.
Cox graduated magna cum laude from Catawba College in 2007 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre, along with minors in Spanish and Dance. Drawn initially to Catawba through a college guidebook, a campus visit quickly turned the College into her top choice. “It felt like home,” she has said, a powerful sentiment for someone who, as a military child, moved fourteen times and attended eight different schools before college. At Catawba, Cox immersed herself fully in campus life, theatre productions, service, and leadership, ultimately being crowned Miss Catawba her senior year.
Since graduating, Cox has built a dynamic career as an actor, writer, director, and producer across theatre, television, and film. Her professional credits include appearances on Grey’s Anatomy, Jane the Virgin, How to Get Away with Murder, Chicago Fire, and Bob Hearts Abishola, as well as film roles in Ford v. Ferrari and Win It All. Her theatre work spans respected companies such as Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, American Players Theatre, and Renaissance Theaterworks. In addition to her performance career, Cox is deeply committed to advocacy and service, including work helping individuals who have experienced homelessness share their stories to support housing policy reform.
In 2019, Cox was inducted into Catawba’s Blue Masque Hall of Fame, recognizing her as a distinguished alumna and accomplished artist whose career exemplifies excellence, compassion, and leadership.
The inaugural recipient of the Tiffany Yvonne Cox ’07 Annual Scholarship is Mak Petersen Jones, a first-year student double majoring in BFA Musical Theatre and BS Theatre Administration, from Clayton, North Carolina. Jones plans to graduate in Spring 2029 and aspires to pursue a professional career as an actor, while also exploring opportunities behind the scenes in arts administration through management and marketing.
“The support means everything,” Jones said. “I’m incredibly grateful to Ms. Cox for creating this scholarship and to everyone who made it possible. Hearing how she spoke with Dr. Beth Homan about me when selecting the recipient was especially meaningful. Knowing that my work and potential were seen and valued has inspired me to keep pushing myself and exploring my passion for theatre even more here at Catawba.”
Cox established the scholarship with the hope of extending the same sense of affirmation and opportunity she experienced as a student. She credits Catawba’s Theatre faculty with teaching her to lead with kindness, trust her abilities, and believe that what she brings to the table is enough, lessons she now hopes to pass on to future generations of students.
Donations to support the Tiffany Yvonne Cox ’07 Annual Scholarship can be made online at:
https://www.givecampus.com/schools/CatawbaCollege/tiffany-yvonne-cox-07-annual-scholarship/?a=5813288
