The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) recognized its Class of 2016 interns, fellows, and scholars under its Student Professional Development Programs (SPDP) Department on December 9, 2016, creating a new pipeline of highly qualified minority professionals to fill the jobs that are needed in the 21st century.
Nearly all of the 260 interns, fellows, and scholars, including 15 from Oakwood University, are current students or recent graduates of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), and successfully completed their internships this past summer.
“Thanks to our supportive donors and partners, we’re creating transformational career development opportunities, allowing our students to gain a competitive edge in securing career opportunities,” said Taliah Givens, UNCF SPDP senior director. “We received favorable feedback across the board from corporations who had positive experiences with our interns and fellows. Over 86 percent of intern supervisors feel that UNCF interns demonstrated the critical thinking and academic skills necessary to complete their assignments, and showed great interest in learning the field. It is our hope that these relationships turn into full-time employment after graduation, as our analysis also shows that over 80 percent of supervisors felt that their intern was a great fit for their organization, and that they are happy to maintain ongoing professional mentoring with their intern.”
The 2016 interns, fellows, and scholars are among the top-selected recipients in key UNCF pipelines for developing highly qualified college graduates. Of those programs that awarded scholarships, more than $650,000 was collectively awarded to selected scholars to help them advance their studies.
The Class of 2016 includes the following individuals from Oakwood and their status as of summer 2016:
- Redmond Bandy – Sophomore, Business
- Kenesha Bennett – Senior, Education
- Mauricia Clarke – Senior, Allied Health
- Darren Daly – Junior, Education
- Khristian Edwards-McCoy – Freshman, Business
- Laurie Farreau – 5th-year Senior, Biology
- Kayla Harris – Junior, Social Work
- Sanna-Gay Hird – 5th-year Senior, Pre-Medicine
- Derek Lane – Sophomore, Engineering
- Deja Langston – Junior, Early Childhood Education
- Alice Merelus – Senior, Nursing
- Jujuan Sanders – Junior, Theology
- Mariah Smith – Senior, Chemistry
- Wendell Tavuyanago – Junior, Social Work
- Jontaya Williams – Senior, Education
Oakwood University | February 2017
Comments are closed.