(PRESS RELEASE) LAS VEGAS, NV — The third annual Beatrice Shipley Scholarship—created by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the American Gem Society (AGS) in 2019 — was awarded to Nicole Hurdle, RJ, from Hurdle’s Jewelry, an AGS member store in Boulder, Colorado.
The scholarship will cover complete tuition for the GIA Graduate Gemologist on-campus or distance education program in Carlsbad, California, along with the costs of the AGS Way Course and entry to the 2022 AGS Conclave event in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, April 25–27.
AGS and GIA jointly established the Beatrice Shipley Scholarship; AGS administered the application process and awarded the scholarship.
“AGS is grateful to GIA for their ongoing commitment to AGS and for partnering on this scholarship. Beatrice Shipley and her husband, Robert, changed the course of the jewelry industry, and we are honored to be part of their legacy,” said Katherine Bodoh, CEO of the American Gem Society and AGS Laboratories. “We are so pleased to award Nicole with this scholarship. She is passionate about jewelry and serving her customers. This opportunity will help her further advance her career.”
“We are pleased and honored to see the legacy of Beatrice Shipley living on in this opportunity. Congratulations to Nicole Hurdle for being awarded this scholarship! I am certain that you will expand your expertise and your network of passionate professionals,” said Susan Jacques, GIA president, and CEO.
Ms. Hurdle is a fourth-generation member of her family’s jewelry store in Boulder, Colorado. Her great-grandfather started Hurdle’s Jewelry in 1947, down the street from their current location. Nicole was born and raised in Boulder, growing up in and around the jewelry store. She attended the University of Colorado Boulder, where she received her bachelor’s degree in Business Management. In her spare time, Ms. Hurdle loves learning more about the jewelry industry.
“I am extremely grateful to receive the Beatrice Shipley award,” Ms. Hurdle said. “To follow in the footsteps of a woman who paved the way for so many in our industry is an honor.”
Both GIA and AGS were founded in the 1930s when Robert and Beatrice Shipley cashed in their savings to create two organizations with the goal of educating jewelers, professionalizing the industry, and creating a guild for these jewelers to join.