Newsletter July 2022
Volume 4, Issue 3
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2022 Honorable Louis Stokes HBCU Scholarship Award Recipient
– Jazmine Hughes
In March, we began our annual scholarship application process with 489 initiated applications! The Williams-Franklin Foundation is committed to providing academic scholarships, business/career networking, and mentoring opportunities to HBCU students with extreme financial need. This year, we were able to increase the scholarship amount for our Awardees from $2,000 to $5,000. We awarded a total of $101,000 to 20 WFF scholarship recipients! Jazmine Hughes is the 2022 Honorable Louis Stokes HBCU Scholarship Award recipient as the top scoring scholar this year.
Congressman Louis Stokes of Ohio funded our Co-Founder, LaShelle Franklin's, college education at Howard University. Ultimately, this generosity and grace inspired the development of the Williams-Franklin Foundation. Jazmine, expected class of 2025, is from Clemson, South Carolina. She is studying Business Administration at Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University. In the summer of 2022, Jazmine was a Risk Compliance Intern with Statefarm. She has also been a Financial Services Intern for the Goldman Sachs: HBCU Market Madness program. Jazmine is Co-Founder and Co-President of Emerging Women, a community service organization based in South Carolina. On campus, she is a FAMU Business, LLC Group Leader supervising a sixty member committee and coordinating outreach campaigns. Upon graduating, Jazmine plans to pursue a Master of Business Administration to earn a position at a Fortune 500 company and pursue a career in finance.
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The 2022 WFF Golf Tournament was a Success! | | |
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On June 20th, we hosted our Inaugural Golf Tournament Fundraiser at Lakewood Country Club! Members of our WFF community joined together in Rockville, Maryland for a day of golfing, fellowship, and networking. We had over 125 golfers and 27 sponsors. Our Title Sponsor, Adrian & Clay Goldsborough/First Financial group, donated $25,000 to invest, educate, and impact HBCU students around the nation. We are happy to announce that we greatly exceeded our fundraising goal of $100,000! View all photos from the golf tournament here and a video recap here.
WFF Alumna, Christyn Carr, joined us in a round of golf at Lakewood. As a two-time WFF Scholar and avid golfer, Christyn graduated with a B.S. in Nursing from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University in May. In addition to studying to become a Registered Nurse this summer, she is pursuing a professional career in golf.
“I never saw myself going to an HBCU but now I can confidently say there’s nowhere else I would have rather been. The opportunities NCAT and the WFF offered me have enabled me to receive the best education and greatest connections possible that will remain with me through the rest of my career!” – Christyn Carr, North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University Class of 2022
Stay tuned for sponsorship and registration information for our 2023 golf tournament!
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Mentor Matching Program Applications - Open Now | | |
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Applications for our 2022-2023 Mentor Matching Program are officially open! The Williams-Franklin Foundation is committed to funding our scholarship recipients’ HBCU education, as well as providing mentorship, professional development, and networking opportunities. Our Mentor program fosters trusting relationships between WFF Scholars and community members. In the program’s first year, we paired 12 Awardees with 12 mentors sharing similar career interests, experiences and passions.
We are seeking mentors who will:
- Encourage healthy study habits and time management skills;
- Support students achieve their academic and career objectives;
- Assist students with creating a viable professional network;
- Engage students by phone or email once a month;
- Schedule 1-2 activities with student per semester; and
- Commit to being a mentor to a paired WFF Scholar for at least one year.
Apply to mentor a HBCU student by completing this form by Wednesday, August 31, 2022. Mentors must be at least 22 years of age and have a can-do attitude! We are looking for mentors who are approachable, prepared, and compassionate.g
“I’m grateful to the WFF for matching me with such an ambitious, bright and engaged student. Though many mentorships develop organically through existing relationships, WFF’s intentionality behind pairing students and mentors whose interests, backgrounds and ambitions align makes the program particularly special. That mentee-centric approach promotes continued support of the mentee over time and I applaud WFF for their efforts. On a personal note, it has been a joy getting to know and supporting my mentee. The relationship is mutually fulfilling and important.”
— Tasha Hutchins, 2021-2022 WFF Mentor
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IG Live Webinars with Special Guests
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We have many exciting events planned for this year including, three webinars with special guests Bryce Thomspon, Christopher Gray, and Lauren Rosa Miller! Each special guest is dynamic, innovative and a leader within their respective industries. Our instructional webinars aim to provide tips and opportunities for professional and academic success, as well as introduce students to professionals around the country. The workshops align with our mission to prepare students for success aside from providing academic scholarships.
The webinars will be hosted on Instagram live @wffscholarship at 5pm EST. Anyone can join! Our first Instagram live webinar, “Get Your Money Up: Entrepreneurship and Personal Branding with Bryce Thompson,” will be held on Sunday October 23, 2022 at 5pm ET. Entrepreneur, investor, author, and Morehouse College student, Bryce Thompson will provide tools and resources to help HBCU students achieve financial success. Bryce will discuss how to build, monetize, and grow a personal business as a student or post-graduation. Whether you are looking to turn an idea into a business or trying to grow your own, this webinar has something in store for you! This is a public event sure to offer helpful information to all, feel free to pass the flyer on to college students and young professionals.
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New Grant Partner - Washington Gas Light Company | |
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We are delighted to announce that WFF received a grant from the Washington Gas Light Company (WGL). Included in this grant, WGL will fund the Washington Gas Scholarship that will be awarded to WFF Scholar Jaden Petrus. Returning Awardee Jaden Petrus, expected class of 2023, is from Brooklyn, New York. Jaden is a Nursing student at Howard University. In the summer of 2022, Jaden worked at the Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C. as a Nurse Trainee working in the surgical care unit. Jaden is a Project Assistant at the Howard University Hospital where she assists with research efforts, administrative tasks, and manages social media accounts. Additionally, Jaden is a Co-Founder of the Howard University Chapter of March for Our Lives working to advocate for sensible gun violence prevention policies and a member of the Young Africana Leadership Initiative. Jaden has published research on the history of medical apartheid and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Black community in the Just Health Web Publication at the Stanford University School of Medicine Center of Excellence. After graduating from Howard, Jaden will become a Nurse Practitioner to eradicate inequitable and unsafe treatment of minorities in healthcare environments.
“For nearly 175 years, Washington Gas has been part of the Washington, D.C. metro area and our role in the community goes beyond providing energy. We have a long-standing commitment to service and to making a difference in the lives of our customers, our employees and members of the communities we serve. Education is one of our key philanthropic focus areas and we value the opportunity to support the next generation of leaders by providing resources for students attending HBCUs. That is why we are honored to support the Williams-Franklin Foundation as they endeavor to support HBCU students with extreme financial need through their college years to graduation.”
— Michelle Musgrove, Vice President of Customer Experience
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