Meet the Alabama State University students named White House HBCU Scholars
Every year since 2014, the White House has selected a new cohort of the top students from historically Black colleges and universities to travel to D.C. and receive honors as White House HBCU Scholars.
The number of participating schools grows year after year, and in the 2023 cohort, there are more students from Alabama than any other state. 13 Alabamians and two out-of-state students who attend school in Alabama will join the 102-person cohort.
“Our 2023 HBCU Scholars are talented students who embody the culture of excellence and inclusion championed by our nation's Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a statement. “On behalf of the U.S. Department of Education and everyone across the Biden-Harris Administration, I congratulate each of our 2023 HBCU scholars on this prestigious recognition and thank them for their commitment to serving their communities.”
The program is part of The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence and Economic Opportunity. The selected scholars will visit the nation’s capitol in September, and throughout this school year, they will serve as ambassadors for the initiative.
The U.S. Department of Education defined these ambassador duties in broad terms to include helping their communities, strengthening democracy, encouraging other students’ in their success and growing the economy.
Two students from Montgomery’s Alabama State University made the cut and will be stepping up as White House Scholars this year: Haley Heard and Laquann Wilson.
Meet Haley Heard
Heard, who is working toward her master’s in accounting, grew up in Birmingham.
As a girl, she regularly heard her nanna, Clementene Mosley, talking about the time she spent at ASU. There were stories about roaming campus, finding community and constantly learning about the world. That’s what Heard wanted for herself, so she followed her legacy to ASU.
“I am humbled to be a White House scholar,” Heard said. “I really never thought I would actually be here, but I am very thankful for Alabama State as a whole because I do feel like they are the reason why I am where I am today. It's like a home away from home, and that feeling just pushes you.”
While completing her bachelor’s degree, Heard familiarized herself with almost every organization on campus and joined many of them. She became the president of the Beta Pi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, helped with student mentoring and worked in the on-campus health center through the pandemic.
Heard also finished all four of her undergraduate years with a perfect 4.0 GPA, and she is now spending the summer interning with accounting firm KPMG.
No matter where she goes, though, Heard said she will always look to her nanna as a role model.
“She’s a go-getter,” Heard said. “I would love to be in her shoes as far as being well-respected and having that positive light and energy around me."
She sees the White House HBCU Scholar honor is just another step in the right direction.
Meet Laquann Wilson
Wilson was not always sure what path he wanted to take. As the oldest son in a big family, he felt determined to set a good example from a young age, but deciding what exactly that meant took some time.
His hometown is Palmyra, N.J., and Wilson studied criminal justice at a community college in that area before moving south to Augusta, Ga. From there, he made the decision to enroll at ASU, and he is now working toward a bachelor’s degree in political science.
“My parents are from Jamaica, so hard work and perseverance, they passed all that down to me,” he said. “Feeling that pride for where you come from, your heritage, and coming here to see that work does pay off has been a blessing.”
Wilson wanted to do more than just academics at ASU. He works with the Collegiate 100, a student organization that supports youth in the community, and he also serves on the University Programs and Activities Board.
Receiving the honor of becoming a White House HBCU Scholar was a sign for Wilson that he was on the right path, he said. Before ASU administrators reached out asking him to apply, Wilson was wavering in his plan for the future, even contemplating dropping out of school so that he could move to be closer to his family.
Now, he’s more assured than ever.
“What I’ve realized here is that if God’s giving you a ‘no,’ it’s because there’s a ‘yes’ coming further down the line,” Wilson said. “This is what God has put in my life for me.”
Other Alabamians in the 2023 cohort
In addition to Heard and Wilson, there are 13 other students in the White House HBCU Scholars cohort who have ties to Alabama. Here they are:
Matilda Perryman from Montgomery, Trenholm State Community College
Morgan Marshall from Montgomery, Alabama A&M University
Thaddeus Sneed from Montgomery, Trenholm State Community College
Jamal Maloney Jr. from Dothan, Lincoln University of Pennsylvania
Ta’Kari Bryant from Dothan, Stillman College
Jessica Parker from Gadsden, Gadsden State Community College
Jaela Haynes Williams from Huntsville, Stillman College
Makahla Riley from Madison, Drake State Community & Technical College
Ch'Erykah Dunn from Troy, Paine College
Chiamaka Okafor from Tuscaloosa, Shelton State Community College
Eddie Tolbert from Tuskegee, Drake State Community & Technical College
Bruce Taylor from Tuskegee, Tuskegee University
Raquel Liverpool from Brooklyn, New York, Miles College
Hadley Hitson covers children's health, education and welfare for the Montgomery Advertiser. She can be reached at hhitson@gannett.com. To support her work, subscribe to the Advertiser.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Alabama HBCU students receive honors, opportunity from the White House
