The American Advertising Federation of Birmingham awarded a Montgomery native the annual Robert F. Luckie, Jr. Memorial Scholarship Tuesday.

Griffith Waller, son of Lucile Griffith Waller and the late William Christopher Waller, Sr., is a senior who will graduate as a double-major in Public Relations and Political Science at the University of Alabama in December. He said one of his teachers in the College of Communications and Information Sciences encouraged him to apply for the scholarship early in the spring semester.

Waller said he received a phone call last week inviting him to the AAFB event to accept the scholarship. The event recognized Waller, while also recognizing the winners of the district’s ADDY advertising awards.

The Luckie family started the $2500 scholarship years ago in honor of Robert Luckie, Jr. They are the gatekeepers of the scholarship. Waller said one member of AAFB mentioned only members of the Luckie family and suite office holders in Luckie & Co. reviewed each application, which consisted of an essay, portfolio and resume.

The essay asked each applicant to explain why they want to pursue a career in creative writing in advertising or other industries. It also asked why the students thought they deserved the award and how it would impact their lives. Each applicant was instructed to include two letters of recommendation from professors.

Waller graduated from Trinity Presbyterian School in 2006. He is a student in the University’s College of Communication and Information Sciences, where he is majoring in Public Relations. The University’s Public Relations program was recently ranked the #1 undergraduate program in the nation by PRWeek magazine. He is also a member of the college’s Launch Campaign team. It is a group of students very active in the college who are working with the Century Council to lower binge drinking based on an award winning campaign the University’s Ad Team submitted in a national competition. The Ad Team’s campaign impressed the organization, which awarded the school and three others a grant to implement the campaign.

Waller is also majoring is Political Science.