In the News…

Chi Gamma Gamma Chapter Scholarship

The Chi Gamma Gamma chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc., is accepting applications for the 2012 scholarship award.

Scholarship is for a male high school senior, who will graduate in the spring of 2012, who resides in the Cobb County or North Fulton County.

Please download the instruction guide and application using the following link.

2012 XGG Scholarship Application

Deadline is Saturday, March 31, 2012.

 

Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Progam

Eligibility: Students eligible for nomination for the Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program must be legal U.S. residents between the ages of 6 and 18. Each Student must be nominated by someone aged 21 years or older. Parents may nominate their own children.

Nominations: The nomination form can be accessed at Kohlskids.combeginning February 1, 2012. Forms must be completed, submitted and signed electronically (by typing your name) no later than March 15, 2012. One nomination form should be submitted per Student. One nominator may nominate multiple students by submitting multiple nomination forms. Nominations should describe how the student has contributed to the community in a meaningful way by performing volunteer services that helped non-family members. The volunteer activity must have occurred within the last 12 months. Financial need or academic performance will not be considered in the review and selection of winners.

Go to the Kohl’s Cares® Scholarship Program website…

Buick Achiever’s Scholarship Program

The Buick Achievers Scholarship Program and access to the online application are available at www.buickachievers.com. Awards of up to $25,000 per year will be awarded to 100 students and 1,000 students will receive $2,000 one-time awards.

Eligibility Criteria:

  • High school seniors or current college undergraduates enrolling for full-time study at an accredited four-year U.S. college or university for the 2012-13 academic year.
  • Plan to major in a specified course of study that focuses on Engineering/Technology, or select Design and Business-related programs.
  • Have an interest in a career in the automotive or related industries.

Deadline to apply is February 29, 2012.

College Planning Seminar

College planning is a knowledge intensive process, full of hurdles, confusion, and overwhelming, as thousands of high school seniors recently discovered. This workshop simplifies the process and provides a comprehensive, easy-to-follow set of strategies that can be specifically tailored to any audience by:

  • providing students and families with a full scope of strategies to follow, beginning as students enter middle school. Students and parents will be well prepared to put together high quality college application packages to substantially increase the odds of students getting accepted into their top choice colleges and universities.
  • providing teachers, coaches, and counselors with strategies for building the necessary relationships with students and families so that students and families are proactive in developing comprehensive college-bound plans.
  • providing representatives from PTA/PTSAs, churches, and community organizations with the necessary training to better support students and families in developing comprehensive college-bound plans.
  • providing school-based planning teams with strategies for integrating college planning into advisory and home room.
  • providing coaches, band directors, art, dance, and drama teachers with strategies that will open the college pathway to thousands of dollars in scholarships and need-based aid for their students.

Contact our offices to be placed onto our mailing list so you will be notified of a seminar near you or have a representative from PTA/PTSA, church, school, or community organization contact us to arrange for a seminar in your community.

Email: seminars@accessandequity.org

Click here to download a flyer…

Nursing Home Abuse Scholarship

Nursing Home Abuse – Awareness and Prevention Scholarship. Created by NursingHomeAbuse.net, this scholarship is awarded exclusively to an applicant who is pursuing a career that will help combat nursing home abuse. The scholarship is worth $5,000 and will be awarded to a student currently enrolled in a postsecondary institution. The scholarship will pay for non-tuition related expenses for the 2012-2013 academic year. Such expenses can include, but are not limited to:

  • Rent
  • Childcare
  • Travel/Gas
  • Books/Supplies
  • Utilities
  • Groceries

February 15, 2012 is the application deadline

Visit www.nursinghomeabuse.net to apply

 

Building Faith-based Partnerships

One of the most pressing challenges in communities, both in the U.S. and abroad, is closing the achievement gap between Black males and their counterparts from other demographic groups. Our partnership with the Turner Chapel AME Church Education Ministry has yielded some important and impressive successes that other communities can learn from. Pictured above are students whom we begin working with to prepare for the Georgia Criterion-Reference Competency Testing (CRCT). Through such early interventions, our students will not only be better prepared to be admitted into college, they will be prepared to succeed in college.

Through our strategies, we have been able to:

  • Create an institutional focus on student achievement
  • Establish expectations and publicly celebrate student achievement
  • Inspire students to establish personal achievement goals
  • Provide support mechanisms for students to achieve their goals
  • Empower experts to lead
  • Build partnerships to expand
  • Engage in continual debriefing/preplanning to assess and revise strategies

These strategies have resulted in a broad range of programs, initiatives, and support mechanisms for students in elementary school through college:

  1. A biannual celebration of student achievement for students in grades K – 12 earning a 3.0 GPA or higher we have successfully raised academic expectations and parent awareness of the importance of tracking their child’s grades semester to semester, and from year to year. We offer special award for the male and female students in grades 6 – 12 who have the highest overall GPA.
  2. Georgia CRCT (Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests) Prep for students in grades 3 – 8 through our partnerships with High Points Learning (online math tutorial) and Pathways Educational Services (math teachers/tutors).
  3. A comprehensive series of college-planning workshops outlining the importance of course selection, academic rigor, school choice, summer programs, enrichment opportunities, college research, essay writing, interviewing, scholarships, financial aid, completing the FAFSA, and the importance of community service.
  4. SAT Prep and college tours through our partnership with Pathways Educational Services to expose students to college campuses, college admissions officers, and the type of SAT and ACT scores that colleges are looking for in applicant pool.
  5. An annual college fair with over 50 colleges and universities represented. HBCUs, state colleges and universities, Ivy League, Technical Colleges, and the U.S. Service Academies are all represented so that our students can learn firsthand what it will take to prepare for college.
  6. A leadership program for high school students, the Education Ministry Youth Ambassadors. This program is designed to ensure they develop the presentation, public speaking, and leadership skills that will make them competitive candidates for the most selective colleges and universities.
  7. A high school graduation celebration for our high school seniors, who attend public and private secondary schools in as many as 8 different school districts. We recognize, celebrate, pray, and bless them with financial awards as we send them off to a broad range of institutions of higher education (HBCU, Ivy League, State Colleges and Universities, Military Academies, and Liberal Arts Colleges).
  8. An Adopt-a-Grad program where we remain connected to our college students. They are invited to participate on our annual college panel, relied upon to mentor students enrolling at their college or university, and are provided with scholarship and internship opportunities.

We are not relying on a “Program,” but a set of “Strategies.” These strategies have yielded extraordinary results. Our students have participated in a board range of enrichment and pre-college summer programs, received full scholarships to a broad range of colleges and universities, have been recognized as National Merit and Gates Millennium Scholars. Our students have earned near perfect scores on the Georgia Writing Assessment, CRCT, SAT, and ACT.

These strategies provide a comprehensive model that any faith-based or community organization can model. Schools cannot do it alone. Based on the 2011 ACT results, nearly 8 out of 10 of all high school seniors took the ACT with aspirations of attending a 4-year college of university. However, less than 4 out of 10 were considered “college ready” in each of the subject areas tested. For Black students, only 4 out of 100 were college ready.

Please contact us to learn how your church or community organization can develop such strategies to meet the needs of students and families in your local community.

(678) 395-5825 or email mychalwynn@accessandequity.org.

Download Faith-based PowerPoint Slides

Download the Collaborative Conference for Student Achievement Presentation…

Click here for videos of some of these initiatives …

Visit Turner Chapel AME Education Ministry on Facebook…

Visit us on Facebook…

Increasing Black Male Achievement (WCPSS)

Wake County Public Schools’ Saturday Speaker Institute

I was honored at having been invited to speak at the distinguished Wake County Public Schools’ Saturday Speaker Institute. I was equally gratified to have so many educators set aside their Saturday to engage in discussions with colleagues around the very important issue of Increasing Black Male Achievement.

Some of the important information shared was:

  • Disaggregated student performance and college enrollment data and how it should be used to drive strategic discussions
  • The importance of identifying successful Black males at the secondary school and postsecondary school level to engage in conversations with Black males in elementary, middle, and high school
  • How to develop strategies that are “Research-Responsive”
  • The importance of understanding your personal journey and how it can connect you to the challenges, experiences, hopes, and dreams of your students
  • Why you must focus your strategic discussions on those areas that you believe to be the greatest contributing factors to the low performance of Black males within your school community
  • The importance of identifying and supporting the “Champions” within your school community as exemplified by such champions as Marva CollinsUrban Prep Charter High School, and Morehouse College

From the table discussions and the commitment that many in attendance made to immediately implementing strategies provides us with hope. The personal responsibility that many accepted to implement strategies within their personal sphere of influence provides an example—we need not wait on new programs, a new curriculum, or new policy. We can make a difference in the academic outcomes and shape a more positive future for children today. We can make a difference through the relationships that we cultivate and strategies that we implement.

Click here for the PDF file of the presentation…

Click here for Mychal Wynn YouTube Channel…

Navigating the College Admissions Process

For the first time, through our partnership with the Turner Chapel AME Church Education Ministry, we offered free college application packaging sessions over the course of three days, during the week following Christmas, for high school seniors. These sessions were in response to the frustration expressed by a number of parents and students regarding the difficulty in navigating the college admissions process and the difficulty experienced by many students with writing scholarship essays. Such research studies as, “Barriers to College Attainment: Lessons from ChicagoCan I Get a Little Advice here? How an Overstretched High School Guidance System is Undermining Students’ College Aspirations, and From High School to the Future: Potholes on the Road to College,” provides insight into why so many students are “under matched” in the college choices. The difficulty in navigating the college admissions process results in many students who are academically capable of getting accepted into highly selective colleges and universities from even applying to such colleges and universities.

Even with offering to freely provide the necessary college application packaging support for students, nearly all of the students and parents who had signed up for the sessions, failed to actually attend. The only two students to actually show up, were my son and a friend who is both a member of our church and student at his high school. Fortunately for my son and his friend, the absence of other students meant that they had more personalized attention with writing their essays and preparing their college application packages.

I had no idea that this would be such a daunting task. In fact, it consumed the better part of three days and nights with my son’s final college applications being submitted close to the midnight deadline on New Year’s eve. Almost much has been written about the college admissions process and the importance of carefully creating a student’s college application packages, we learned some valuable lessons.

  1. The earlier that a student identifies the types of colleges and universities that he or she will be interested in attending, the sooner he or she will be able to begin to identify the types of classes, programs, extracurricular activities, and community service that are best aligned with each colleges’ institutional needs and admissions expectations. For example, we were initially concerned with our son’s lack of having engaged in a broad range of community service activities. However, we discovered that his most passionate areas of community service, which he had been engaged in for several years at our church, were directly aligned with some of the institutional priorities of the colleges he was interested in applying to.
  2. The importance of reviewing the essay questions on the Common Application website and the specific questions within the supplements for the colleges and universities a student is interested in applying to. Some of the essay prompts and university-specific questions will require a great deal of thought, as well as editing by a teacher or parent.
  3. The importance of students allowing enough time to carefully review their packages and allowing for the opportunity of having their packages reviewed by others for misspellings, incorrect word usage, and fragmented thoughts in their essays. Students should keep in mind that their      application will be reviewed along with thousands of other applications and that they will be competing with thousands of other students for a limited number of invitations for admissions at the colleges and universities they apply to.

Some of the questions that our son had to answer or write essay responses to were:

Considering both the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying and the unique aspects of our university, what do you hope to learn from and contribute to our university community?

Engineering leaders do more than just solve technical problems. What kinds of experiences, inside and outside of the classroom, would you want to explore to enhance your studies?

Engineers have sometimes been stereotyped as “nerds” or “geeks.” Do you embrace or reject that stereotype? Why?

A distinctive feature of our curriculum is the opportunity to be the architect of your education. Why does this academic environment appeal to you?

We all exist within communities or groups of various sizes, origins, and purposes; pick one and tell us why it is important to you, and how it has shaped you.

What does the following quotes mean to you:

“Stereotyped beliefs have the power to become self-fulfilling prophesies for behavior.”

“It seems to me incumbent upon this and other schools’ graduates to recognize their responsibility to the public interests…unless the graduates of this college…are willing to put back into our society those talents, the broad sympathy, the understanding, the compassion. Then obviously the presuppositions upon which our democracy are based are bound to be fallible.”

Setting aside this time to assist my son and his friend was truly beneficial. We are hopeful that they will be accepted into each of the colleges they applied so that they will have the opportunity to review and compare multiple financial aid offers. However, knowing that they had the necessary guidance and support to ensure that they submitted quality application packages to each of the schools and they are well prepared to be competitive candidates for admission is reward in itself.

The experience has taught us how important our efforts are in assisting students with pursuing their college-bound dreams. No matter how many students take advantage of the opportunity, we are comforted with knowing that we have ensured that help, that is rarely offered by their high schools, is available to widen the pathway to college.

Wesleyan College for Women Scholarships

It is critically important that students thoroughly research the available scholarship programs at the colleges and universities that they are considering, and particularly those that they are interested in applying. For example, the Wesleyan College for Women in Georgia has a broad range of scholarships for incoming students that can substantially reduce the tuition burden for qualifying students.

2011-2012 Academic Scholarships & Eligibility Requirements

ScholarshipValueNumberMinimum Eligibility Requirements
National ExcellenceFull Tuition, Room & BoardNational Merit or Achievement Finalist, National Hispanic Scholar.
Pitts$18,500
Annually
VariesOutstanding commitment to community service, leadership, and The United Methodist Church (3.0GPA & 1000 SAT or 23 ACT).Download Application: Pitts Scholarship
Munroe$18,500
Annually
2Outstanding science/math student. (See Presidential.)Download Application:Munroe Scholarship
Findlay$18,500
Annually
2Outstanding humanities or social science student. (See Presidential.)Download Application:Findlay  Scholarship
Knox McNeill$18,500
Annually
2Outstanding commitment to faith and community service (3.25 GPA & 1000 SAT or 25 ACT).Download Application:Knox Scholarship
Lane$18,500
Annually
3Outstanding fine arts student. (1000 SAT/21 ACT & 3.0 GPA)Download Application:Lane Scholarship
Peyton AndersonTuition, Room & BoardVariesCommitment to teaching in Middle Georgia (3.60 GPA & 1100 SAT or 29 ACT).*
Valedictorian/
Salutatorian
$14,000Outstanding students who have earned the recognition as valedictorian or salutatorian of their high school and meet our minimum admission requirements.
Trustee$11,3001400 SAT/31 ACT & 3.50 GPA; or 1300 SAT/29 ACT & 3.75 GPA
Presidential$9,0001300 SAT/29 ACT & 3.50 GPA; or 1200 SAT/27 ACT & 3.75 GPA
Dean’s$6,7001200 SAT/27 ACT & 3.50 GPA; or 1100 SAT/25 ACT & 3.75 GPA
Girl Scout Gold Award$9,000Applicants must be candidates for the Girl Scout Gold Award and designate Gold Award on “How did you hear about Wesleyan” section of application. (1100 SAT/25 ACT & 3.0 GPA).*
FBLA$9,000Applicants must be a Georgia FBLA member winner of the Business, Leaders, or America award. Designate FBLA on “How did you hear about Wesleyan” section of application. (1100 SAT/25 ACT & 3.0 GPA).*
Wesleyan MeritUp to
$5,000
1000 SAT/21 ACT & 3.0 GPA

*Requires special scholarship application.

Students who qualify for Wesleyan’s premier scholarships will be invited to compete at our annual Scholarship Day event in February. SAT score requirements listed above include only critical reading and math. ACT requirements listed above are based on the total composite.

Leadership Awards and Eligibility Requirements

Pierce Leadership Award
Wesleyan has a special focus on developing leadership ability in women. Interested students should compete their application materials, including an in-depth resume of leadership positions held. Awards range from $1000-$3000.
Acceptance of the Leadership Award requires that the student participate in the Pierce Pioneer Leaders Program.

Lovick P. and Elizabeth T. Corn Scholarships
Wesleyan College, with the generous support of Lovick and Elizabeth Corn, provides scholarships to students who demonstrate leadership in service to their schools, churches, or communities, and exemplify the qualities of leadership, character, and personal achievement. Up to 3 Tuition, Basic Room & Board scholarships are awarded to incoming first-year students who are graduates from (I) any high school in Columbus, GA, or the greater Chattahoochee area, with preference for students involved in Girls Inc., (II) Brookstone School in Columbus, GA, or (III) The Heritage School in Newnan, GA. Candidates should possess a high school GPA of 3.2 (or 3.0 in the case of a student who is involved with Girls Inc. who shows potential for success at Wesleyan) and meet minimum admission requirements.

United Methodist Leadership Award
Wesleyan is proud of its affiliation with The United Methodist Church. Interested students should complete their application materials, including an in-depth résumé of involvement in the Church and of service to others. Eligible students must have been members of the Church for at least the two most recent years.  Additional information about special scholarship opportunities for Methodist students is available, click here.

Roberto C. Goizueta Memorial Scholarship for Students of Latin American Descent
Wesleyan College, with the generous support of the Roberto C. Goizueta Foundation, provides a varying number of scholarships to entering full-time day students who are of Latin American descent. The Goizueta Memorial Scholarship is a merit and need based award. Any interested student may submit an application; however, eligibility is determined by the Office of Financial Aid Services and only eligible students will be considered.

Art
Students who wish to apply for an Art Scholarship should summit a portfolio consisting of eight to ten works of art. One of the pieces should be a portrait drawn from life (not copied from a photograph). Students are advised to present their best works rather than works in a wide variety of media. The work will be evaluated on understanding of the creative process, handling of the medium, creativity, and presentation. In addition to the portfolio, the student should write a short artistic biography, which tells of the student’s interests and background in art. Portfolio reviews last approximately 30 minutes and include an interview with a member(s) of the Art Department faculty. The student is encouraged to ask any questions she may have about the program at this time. Acceptance of the art scholarship requires that the student pursue either a major or minor in art or art history.

Music
Students who wish to audition for a Music Scholarship should prepare two memorized pieces in contrasting styles. Auditions are given for voice, piano, organ and other instruments. We prefer selections from classical repertoire, but this may not always be possible. Students and their current teacher (s) should choose pieces that present the student at her best, keeping in mind the request for classical selections. Each student will be asked to sight read a simple melody on her primary instrument. All students will be asked to sight sing a simple melody. The audition, which includes an interview with a member(s) of the Music Department faculty, lasts approximately 30 minutes. The student is encouraged to ask any questions she may have about the program at that time. Acceptance of the music scholarship requires that the student pursue either a major or minor in music.

Theatre
Students who wish to audition for a Theatre Scholarship should bring a list of theatre related experiences and have a teacher mail a letter of recommendation. Actors must prepare two memorized monologues of one to two minutes each. The monologues should be in contrasting styles. Students and their current teacher(s) should choose pieces that present the student at her best. The director will work briefly with the student on selections of the monologue in order to assess her ability to take direction. The student who is interested exclusively in technical theatre may choose not to prepare an acting audition, but to submit a portfolio of materials demonstrating her talents and experiences in technical theatre. The audition, which includes an interview with a member of the Theatre Department faculty, lasts approximately 30 minutes. The student is encouraged to ask any questions she may have about the program at that time. Acceptance of the theatre scholarship requires that the student pursue a minor in theatre.

2011 College Discussion Panel

We genuinely appreciate our college students’ willingness to return to share their experiences and to provide guidance for our future college students. We thank you, we praise you, and we applaud you!

Each year, through our partnership with the Turner Chapel AME Church Education Ministry, we host a college panel comprised of students, most of whom have returned home for the holiday. This year’s panelist consisted of students representing a broad range of public and private colleges and universities:

  • Arizona State University
  • Boston University
  • Georgia Southern University
  • Hampton University
  • Howard University
  • Life University
  • Livingston College
  • Mercer University
  • Morehouse College
  • Morehouse Medical School
  • North Carolina A&T University
  • NYU
  • Southern Polytechnic State University
  • Spelman College
  • Tuskegee University
  • U.S. Air Force Academy
  • University of Kentucky
  • University of Miami Law School
  • University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill)
  • Universtity of West Georgia
  • Winston-Salem State University

Students reflected a diversity of journeys, majors, issues, and obstacles. Their willingness to candidly share their experiences concerning professors, financial aid, housing, preparation, budgeting, sororities and fraternities,  and the culture of their respective campuses was enriching for both parents and students in attendance. Panelist ranged from freshmen to graduate school students and from being concerned with budgeting their finances to being a Gates Millennium Scholar and Air Force Academy cadet with monthly stipends.

It would appear so obvious that communities concerned with increasing the number of students who enter and succeed in college would follow this example by remaining connected with the students whom they send off to college and reconnecting them to the students whom they hope to prepare for college. I believe that more of our youth would serve their communities if only more communities would provide mechanisms through which they can serve.

Watch the videos:

  1. Part I, students discuss the difference between HBCUs and PWIs (Predominately White Institutions), if college is everything that is made out to be, their biggest academic challenges, and dorm life
  2. Part II, students discuss what their professors are like
  3. Part III, students discuss academic preparation, budgeting, and making the right choice
  4. Part IV, students discuss how much fun they are having and life at the Air Force Academy
  5. Part V, students talk about their college worship experience, class size, fraternities and sororities, developing character, and networking