Honors College Celebrates Students, First February One Scholar Graduates and Martin

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (May 2X, 2024) – North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University’s Honors College celebrated its students – including the first February One Scholars to graduate – during its annual banquet held at the end of the academic year.

The event was also the last under the leadership of Chancellor Harold L. Martin Sr., who is retiring after 15 years. The Honors College transitioned in 2022 from the University Honors Program (UHP), which launched at Martin’s request in 1998 while he was serving as the university’s vice chancellor of Academic Affairs.

UHP, under the direction of Professor Emeritus Peter Meyers, Ph.D., began with 50 students and a few specially designated general education classes. When it became the Honors College under inaugural Dean Margaret I. Kanipes, Ph.D., it served more than 1,000 students representing nearly every academic department on campus.

The Honors College presented Martin and his wife, Davida, with two gifts at the celebration.

Two students from the inaugural fall 2021 cohort of February One Scholars graduated with the Class of 2024: Kyla Morrison of Charlotte, North Carolina, daughter of Melette Morrison and Jerry Morrison, from the College of Education (CoEd) with a B.S. in elementary education (early education and family studies) and Amileon Williams of Supply, North Carolina, daughter of Natalia Stevenson and Steven Williams, from the John R. and Kathy R. Hairston College of Health and Human Sciences with a B.S. in nursing.

“I chose North Carolina A&T to find a sense of community and a smaller tight-knit learning environment. I found this in my February One Scholarship cohort,” said Morrison. “Thanks to constant support and companionship, I was able to grow and learn throughout my years in this university.”

“Being selected as an Inaugural February One Scholar has been an immense source of empowerment and pride on multiple levels. I have been buoyed through moments of apprehension such as assuming the role of chapter president, embarking on an internship in Houston, Texas, taking on a part-time position as a certified nursing assistant to gain experience, or volunteering when no one else would,” Williams said. “In times of fear or overwhelm, I’ve drawn strength from following in the footsteps of the A&T Four and the faith my institution placed in me.”

The February One Scholars program was established in December 2020 using a portion of philanthropist MacKenzie Scott’s historic $45 million contribution to the university. The program is named for the day in 1960 when four N.C. A&T students energized a national sit-in movement by refusing to leave a segregated lunch counter in downtown Greensboro without being served. The College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (CAHSS), CoEd and Hairston College partnered to provide the full scholarships that became available to the first cohort of eligible students in fall 2021.

The Honors College also houses the prestigious Cheatham-White and Dowdy four-year merit-based full scholarship programs.

Cheatham-White Scholar Alexa N. Smith, of Charlotte, who graduated this spring from the College of Science and Technology (CoST) with a B.S. in computer graphics technology (user experience), served as the banquet’s keynote speaker. Having studied abroad at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus, she served as director of student relations on the Honors Student Advisory Board, technical outreach and community help chair for the National Society of Black Engineers, treasurer of Women in Science and Technology and user experience lead at A&T for the Black Venture Capital Consortium during her collegiate career.

Other Honors College students and Class of 2024 members are:

College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

• Agricultural and Environmental Systems (Agribusiness and Food Industry Management): Dhara Devane and Jillian Thomas
• Agricultural and Environmental Systems (sustainable Land and Food Systems): Maryam Farahani and Jaden Goodman
• Agricultural Education (Secondary Education): Leila Noufal
• Animal Science: Sarah Lucas, Gabrielle Newman, Morgan Rogers and Makayla Williams
• Family and Consumer Science (Fashion Merchandising and Design): Karisi Grant
• Food and Nutritional Sciences (Food Science): Alaina Brock, Stephanie Kinchen and Taylor Peele

CAHSS

• Criminal Justice: Cierra Jones, Brandon Smith, Amyah Solomon and Alexis Wiggs
• English (Creative Writing): Taylor McAuley
• Journalism and Mass Communication (Mass Media Production): Trent Burke, Michael Cartwright, Kaila Collier, Pedro Dudley and Dasia Williams
• Journalism and Mass Communication (Public Relations): Cymone Lucas, Brandon Simpson and Madisyn Williams
• Liberal Studies (Pre-Law): Azariah Banks, Ashleigh Bethea, Alicia Kriuki and Robert Whiteside
• Political Science: Chaniah Brown, Aniah Bucchan, Shawna Floyd, Ketziyah Francis, Tamyah Johnson, Kennedy Lighty and Jared Williams
• Professional Theatre: Jada Wesley
• Visual Arts, Design: Nautica Goodson
• Visual Arts, Design (Media Design): Morgan Platt and Laila Rahman-Latta

Willie A. Deese College of Business and Economics

• Accounting: Brielle Boyd, Sheyanne Eldridge, Daejaah Grier, Timothy Inman, Shatonia Oliver, Santora Taylor and Joshua Whitsett
• Business Information Technology: Cameron Brown and Christian Stewart
• Economics: Jasmine Amaniampong and Sullivan Anderson
• Finance: Aniya Cannon, Ellington King, Elyse McNeil, Noah Smith and Joshua Thornton
• Management (Entrepreneurship): Cheyenne Daniels, Skylar Hayes and Jacquoia Hunter
• Management (International Management): Erica Reynolds
• Marketing: Kyla Boatwright, Tatum Coleman, Charles Collins and Kyndal Cooke
• Supply Chain Management: Arie Bethea and Clinton Boadu

COEd

• Secondary Education (Prelicense: English Secondary Education): Kennedy Penix

College of Engineering

• Architectural Engineering: Aren Buffaloe, Gabrielle Ciceron, George Franks, Akalyn Grant, Andrew New and Royce Watson
• Bioengineering: Reem Ali, Kayla Brown, Chrystal Davis, Leah Edwards, Amber Frye, Ethan Jessup, Jalen Matthews, Joy Odigbo, Kya Richardson, Zahraa Warren, Jailah White, Myles White and Frazier Wilson
• Biological Engineering: Nicholas Chance
• Chemical Engineering: Kristi Barnes, Johnathan Chatman, Taylor Davis, Moriah Milner, Kyandre Roberts, Kayla Seals, Justin Tolbert and Briana White
• Civil Engineering: Damari Dawson, Santiago Garcia-Rico, Tamaya Green and Shal’lise Oliver
• Computer Engineering: Shang Andrews, Makayla Beard, Evan Burton, Nakiya Holliday, Maya Odom, Zachary Percival, Natalya Polite and Austin Smith
• Computer Science: Serena Brantley, Leander Chance, Vincent Goins, Myles Jones, Daequan Peele, Trinitee Richards and Chelsea Vuata
• Electrical Engineering: Edwina Belizaire and Mateo Smith
• Industrial and Systems Engineering: Nadirah Bowman, Kaila Dawkins, Tomeara Gosier, Kennedi Ivey, Bryce Johnson and Selaya Young
• Mechanical Engineering: Journey Barsh, Joseph Bertrand, Ahmari Branch, Lauryn Clinkscales, Kyle King, Gisele Motley, Emmanuel Ogungbemi, Andre Williams, Mitchell Wilson and Stephen Wilson

Hairston College

• Kinesiology: Mia Wilson
• Kinesiology (Exercise Science): Iman Owens
• Nursing: Joirdin Alex, Liberty Anderson, Nadia Chaney, Danesha Gregory, Kara Jackson, Rose Jackson, Payton Love, Caitlin Stover, Kamri Tynes and Selah West
• Psychology: Ti’Yana Dash, Daryn Flournoy, Hannah Greene, Kavon Hodnett, Raina Innis, Dejah James, Katelyn Johnson, Lindsey Moris, Martichia Parker, Olivia Perkins, Kimani Ross, Kaelah Wiggins and Rayna Williamson
• Social Work: Aneya Cornwall and Torree Theodore
• Sociology: Richalyn Johnson, Brooklyn Kemp, Sharla Kirkpatrick and Janiya Medlin
• Speech (Speech Pathology and Audiology): Kamryn Parker

CoST

• Biology: Brielle Brown, Jhordan Buckley, Nia Burton, Aaliyah Clough, Chloe Emehel, Jenae Farrington, Bailey Hadley, Jalyse Harrell, Jayla Harris, Kristian Harris, Colette Haynie, Nevaeh Herndon, Taylor James, Naya Lewis, Alyssa Lopez, Jaela Melton, Morgan Peters, Nia Russell, Kailyn Sellers, Lauren Thomas, Edya Van Hook and Malachi Williams
• Computer Graphics Technology (User Experience): Jeremiah Opata and Alani Pace
• Information Technology: Autumn Grayson, Harmoni Riggins and Renee’ Shepherd
• Mathematics: D’Asia Betts

Honors College members recognized for earning a cumulative 4.0 GPA, including fall 2023 and spring 2024 graduates and returning students,were Sheila Allen, Imani Barnes, Kristi Barnes, Jasmine Bell, Tori Bowman, Leah Brinson, Nehmiah Broadie, Kennedy Brown, Paris Chinn, Randria Cody, Joshua Crittenden, Hayley Dymally-Thomas, Isaiah Fleming, Gabrielle Folson, Ketziyah Francis, Khahmari Frazier, Aysha Genrette, Warren Glover, K’Ia Green, Jyanne Guide, Kaylee Harper, Miles Hart, Kyla Holton, Eden Howard, Norman Hurns, Kamryn Jackson, Ryan Jones, Shakyia Jones, Brooklyn Kemp, Gabrielle King, Elijah Lewis, Makayla Maignan, Talia Manning, Kyrah Martin, Davon Michael, Mikalei Miller, Simone Nelson-White, Kaitlyn Parker, Austin Patterson, Nicholas Raynes, Holly Reed, Niayla Reynolds, Kylie Rice, Lania Ridgeway, Terrence Rouse, Shia Rozier, McKenzie Rudd, Symone Smith, Terra Smith and Madison Solomon.

The Honors College, which also is home to an Honors Living and Learning Community, offers student-centered learning experiences that promote intellectual growth, cultural appreciation, professional focus, leadership development and civic participation. In addition, it houses the university’s liaison and advisor for the Rhodes Scholarship and more than 60 other prestigious and nationally competitive programs which are branded at A&T as extraordinary opportunities (EOs) and are open to all A&T students and alumni.

Incoming first-year students apply for Honors College admission separately from their university admission materials. This year, the Honors College received a record of nearly 2,500 applications for about 200 spaces. Fifty-five full ride scholarships will be awarded.

Students and alumni selected as Cheatham-White, Dowdy and February One scholars have gone on to become tenure-track professors, published authors, entrepreneurs, veterinarians, physicians, attorneys and other leading professionals.

They also have been selected for the Fulbright Program grant, Gilman International Scholarship, Public Policy and International Affairs Junior Summer Institute, Astronaut Scholarship, Rangel Summer Enrichment Program and many other EOs.