— Morgan Taylor Brown, a top student at Fayetteville High School, is this year’s winner of the Tom Joyner Foundation “Full Ride Scholarship” to a black college. For up to 10 semesters, the future trauma surgeon will receive a scholarship to cover his tuition, room and board and books. Brown is an AP Scholar with Honor, a member of the school’s Science Honor Society, a member of the school’s debate team, and participant in the Grady Hospital Teen Volunteer Program. She says she’s setting out to remove the stigma of mental illness, focusing on African American teens and adolescents. —
Morgan Brown
Photo Credit: Blacon Media
Dallas, TX — Morgan Taylor Brown, of Fayetteville, Ga., is the winner of the 2016 Tom Joyner Foundation® “Full Ride Scholarship” that will cover full tuition, room and board (on-campus only) and books up to 10 semesters. Brown plans to attend Spelman College in Atlanta, Ga. where she plans to major in biology and pursue her graduate work to become a psychiatrist.Tom Joyner, the Foundation’s chairman and founder, announced his scholarship today during the Tom Joyner Morning Show, which airs on 100 stations and reaches a broadcast and digital audience more than eight million listeners every week. Brown, a graduating senior from Fayette County High School, was selected from hundreds of applicants for the scholarship.
Brown, an AP Scholar with Honor, a member of the schools Science Honor Society, a member of the school’s debate team, a reading tutor at a local elementary school and participant in the Grady Hospital Teen Volunteer Program. She says she’s setting out to remove the stigma of mental illness, focusing on African American teens and adolescents. During her interview, she recited Spelman’s famous alumna and the college’s success in graduating students who attend medical school.
“The Tom Joyner Full Ride Scholarship has literally made my future possible,” said Brown, who dreams of having her own practice one day. “I have a strong passion for behavioral health and after medical school, I plan to become a psychiatrist. I have overcome every obstacle that has been in my way. I have faced those obstacles by praying, talking to those who are closest to me like my mother, and every time something knocks me down I remained determined and have gotten back up.”
Tom Joyner, host of the nationally syndicated morning radio show, said, “Morgan is an impressive young lady. She is so excited about getting her education at an HBCU, and really wants to make a difference in her community. I know we’re going to hear more about her in the future.”
Scharlotte Bowles, an English teacher at Fayette County High School, wrote in her recommendation, “She is one of the most conscientious young women I have ever had the pleasure to teach, and I regard her as one of the brightest lights in her generation. Knowing her makes me optimistic about the future!”
Brown is the sixth Tom Joyner Foundation Full Ride Scholar. Previous winners include JoAnn Jones who is attending Winston Salem State University in Winston Salem, N.C., pursuing a career in nursing; Titus Ziegler Jr. of Atlanta’s Inman Middle School who served as a commander of the elite Junior ROTC Color Guard and Cheyenne Boyce of Detroit’s Cass Technical High School, graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Spelman College in Atlanta and is currently a Fulbright Scholar in Malaysia where she is teaching English. Blaine Robertson of Reserve, La. is graduating from Howard University in Washington, D.C. with a B.S. in mathematics, a B.A. in history with a minor in secondary education. The first winner, Britney Wilson of Brooklyn, N.Y., recently passed the New York Bar. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and she graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Howard University. Ms. Wilson is working in the New York offices of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
To retain the scholarship, students had to meet the required academic standards each semester. Graduating high school seniors applied for the scholarship by going to BlackAmericaWeb.com. To be eligible, students had to meet the following criteria: 1.) Be a United States citizen; 2.) Be a current high school senior attending school in the United States. Each applicant must complete high school in the spring of 2015; 3.) Have a minimum high school grade point average of 3.5 (on a 4.0 grade scale, excluding home school studies) and minimum SAT score of 2,100 (math and verbal only) or ACT score of 28; 4.) Applicants had to apply and be accepted to an HBCU by July 1, 2015; 5.) Applicants must have demonstrated leadership abilities through participation in community service and extracurricular activities.
Founded in 1998, the Tom Joyner Foundation has raised more than $65 million to help keep students enrolled in black colleges. It has assisted more than 29,000 students and worked with more than 100 HBCUs. To learn more about the Foundation, go to www.TomJoynerFoundation.org.
PRESS CONTACT:
Neil Foote, Media Relations
Tom Joyner Foundation
214-448-3765
neil.foote@tomjoynerfoundation.org