(Dallas, TX – July 27th, 2007) Four Tougaloo College students were there first
recipients of the new Tom Joyner Foundation® – “Brothers on the Move”
Scholarship program designed to help increase the number of black males enrolled
in Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs).
The first recipients of the “Brothers on the Move” $1,500-scholarship were:
* Gregory Johnson, a senior who is an English major from Belzoni, MS, is
planning to be a college professor. He is President of the Student Government
Association and a Mellon Scholar. Johnson spent the summer conducting research
in Brazil, and last summer he traveled to South Africa as an Environmental
Fellow. At Tougaloo he is a mentor at a middle school.
* Joshua Dedmond, a junior who is a History Major with a Religious Studies Minor
from Jackson, MS. The honor student, who plans on becoming a college professor,
is Chaplain of the student chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, class president,
2nd vice state representative of the Mississippi Caucus of Omegas and member of
Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society.
* James Johnson, a junior, English /Pre-Law major from Greenville, MS. He is an
honor student and plans to be a lawyer. Currently, he is Vice President of the
Student Government Association, member of Sigma Tau Delta Honor Society, the
NAACP and the Pre-Alumni Council. Johnson has spent part of his summer at the
University of Massachusetts studying Dialects of African Americans.
* Willie Miller, a senior is a double major in English and Philosophy from
Jackson, MS. This honor student who also is planning to be a college professor,
is State President of the Youth Division of the NAACP, Vice President of Alpha
Phi Alpha Fraternity, Member of the Pre-Alumni Council and Chaplain of the Pan
Hellenic Council.
Joyner, a graduate of Tuskegee Institute, said that the scholarship is greatly
needed. On average, the black male student enrolment at an HBCU is about 37
percent. To be an eligible to be a candidate for the scholarship, students must
attend one of the Foundation’s “Schools of the Month”, have a grade point
average of at least 3.0, be a campus leader, involved in the community have a
career goal to make a difference in the quality of life for his race while
helping others.
Tougaloo is the Foundation’s School of the Month for July; Cheney State
University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA for August; Tennessee State
University in Nashville, TN for September; Edward Waters College in
Jacksonville, FL for October and Savannah State University in Savannah, GA for
November. For information about the scholarship program, students should
contact their school administrators directly to determine their eligibility.
The “Brothers on the Move” scholarship will be announced Thursdays on the Tom
Joyner Morning Show, which is aired in 120 markets reaching nearly eight million
listeners every week. The Foundation offers scholarships to students attending
its Schools of the Month throughout the week, including on Mondays focused on
single parents and on Wednesdays, general scholarship.
Founded in 1998, the Tom Joyner Foundation has raised more than $55 million to
help keep students enrolled in black colleges. It has assisted more than 14,000
students and worked with more than 100 HBCUs.
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