Congratulations

2021 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. OSU Scholarship Winners

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• Read Jada's essay

  Attending a predominantly white institution as a minority student often implies subjecting yourself to an environment that doesn’t understand or represent you in many ways. It often means being the only ounce of color in a room and being pigeon-holed into the spokesperson role in order to educate and accommodate your white brothers and sisters. It often means having to actively exist in order to preserve your sanity, your cultural legacy, as well as create the necessary change to aid the generations that follow you. I realized this very early in my college career through my involvement in OSU’s President’s Leadership Council (PLC) and, as a result, created an initiative to combat the lack of diversity within the program and ensure that black voices are heard.
  
  

  This council, composed of around 125 of Oklahoma State’s brightest incoming freshman who have shown great leadership potential, is in place to equip, mentor, and provide early community leadership experiences. I was so excited to be one of the students chosen out of the 8,000+ applicants. It gave me validation that all of my hard work in high school was paying off. However, on my first day of class I immediately noticed the demographics of the room: there were 13 minority students and 13 designated small groups. There was one minority student in each group, and a total of five black students (including myself). I wasn’t shocked at the lack of representation, considering the demographics of this university. What did shock me was how we were all strategically placed into each of these groups alone, and as a result, we were immediately placed into a spokesperson role that we did not ask for. Throughout the course of this program, this became more and more evident. I was overpowered in all discussions and had reached a state of just going through the motions. But in November of 2019, I decided that I needed to do something about it. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, “What are you doing for others?” Going through the motions wasn’t going to do anything to help the program evolve or help the future minority students that would enter this program. Thus, the Black History Month Initiative was born.
  
  

  In order to make the black voices within PLC heard, I proposed an outline for a Black History Month presentation to my fellow black peers as well as to the program directors. Everyone was immediately on board, so I, along with my black peers, began what would be a three-month process of constructing this presentation that we would present to over 120 of our white peers. We knew that we wanted our voices to be heard, but we also wanted to change the narrative of what black history is. So often, in almost every history class, black history begins with slavery and ends with Abraham Lincoln signing the Emancipation Proclamation (with maybe a few recognizable names thrown in like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks). Usually, that’s it. With this presentation, we aimed to discuss positive contributions that our ancestors and current influential black leaders have made in various sectors of our country as well as address common questions we get as black people. We created a 1-hour presentation that did just that. We each discussed influential black leaders in our desired fields, shared facts about black history that are not taught in most schools, and provided an opportunity for everyone to submit questions anonymously that would be addressed in class.
  
  

  The question-and-answer section that was implemented gave them an opportunity to ask questions that they may have been hesitant to ask. We were met with common questions such as “What is the difference between black and African American?” and also questions laced with ignorance including “Why does Black Lives Matter exist? It just creates more division and is inherently racist.” However, we received many questions that were insightful and displayed that they were trying their best to have a dialogue rather than a monologue. There was also a moment when I truly felt in my heart that we had reached at least one person that day. One of my former white classmates and friends from high school came forward and spoke. I remember vividly what she said: “I’ve known and been friends with Jada for practically our entire academic careers and this is the first time that I am truly understanding her perspective and her experience. This is just opening my eyes to what we as white students at OSU need to understand and do in order to make change happen. Thank you.” This moment makes me reflect on the words of James Baldwin, “The world changes according to the way people see and if you can alter, even by a millimeter, the way people look at reality, then you can change it.” In that moment, we shifted the mindset of at least one person by a millimeter.
  
  

  This year we were awarded the Courage with Controversy in Leadership Award from OSU for our efforts which sparked my reflection of Dr. King’s words that “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands is moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenges and controversy.” Today, I am one of three black facilitators for the PLC program. This year’s program is more diverse, we have more than 20 black students compared to the five we had last year. Minority students are no longer divided based on meeting a diversity quota but rather placed in groups where they are met with similar-minded people. The program now has an entire section dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion. I’m proud of the strides we have made in making the program more representative as well as encouraging the minority voices to be heard while not forcing them into an involuntary speaking role. I will continue to invest in this program and work to amplify the voices of our leaders of color because if not me, then who?

 

• Read Shakeira's essay

  The power of mentorship has the ability to change the course of an individuals’ life. Being a first-generation college student, I’ve learned to overcome many adversities such as growing up in disadvantaged neighborhoods and losing a parent at a young age. The minority and under-privileged communities that surrounded me growing up struggled with mental health difficulties, the cycle of criminality, and the lack of guidance and resources. These individuals did not utilize or have access to mental health treatment and mentorship. I was fortunate to have many mentors throughout my life who helped lead me down a positive path but have also shown me the importance of mentorship. I believe that all the obstacles that I have experienced helped me obtain a testimony to share with individuals that were raised in similar circumstances. These early experiences sparked my interest in psychology and criminal behavior, as well as my passion for mentorship.
  
  

  I began my path of helping underrepresented, underserved and marginalized communities my sophomore year at Oklahoma State University. I first became a Student Academic Mentor for freshman students and an inclusive leadership mentor for juniors and seniors in high school. Additionally, throughout my time in undergrad I realized there was a need for guidance and encouragement in the psychology minority community, so I reestablished the Association of Back Psychologist's Oklahoma State University student circle (ABPSI) for minorities in psychology so that they could gain access to ways to succeed in college. Lastly, within my last year in undergraduate I became the community service/ philanthropy chair within the Theta Beta chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. Through this I was able to use a bigger platform to create a resource closet for underprivilege students on campus. Being involved with these activities I believe I impacted the African American community, other first-generation students and underserved communities on my campus in a positive way.
  
  

  As a Student Academic Mentor for three years with the University college I was privileged to be able to mentor, teach and guide undecided freshman on campus. I chose this role because I myself was placed in the University college my freshman year. Undecided students tend to be underserved or first-generation college students who don’t know what path to take as they embark on the new journey of college. I was able to present lectures on college development and advancement, resources on campus and college survival tips, and share information about scholarly programs and organizations that helped my understanding of leadership within the campus. Sharing this information, multiple freshmen was able to get full transparency from a peer that experienced trials and tribulations through college but also accomplishments and success. Additionally, I was able to attest that it is ok to ask help even though it seems intimidating or uncomfortable. After, sharing and guiding the students to a positive path in college I was able to witness the students use resources on campus that helped them with their academics and social life. Transparency helped encourage and motivate underserved students to continue higher education at Oklahoma State University.
  
  

  Moreover, I was able to do the similar actions with the Inclusive leadership program with teens who were from underrepresented, underserved and from marginalized communities that attended select high schools within the Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Stillwater areas. This program helped me facilitate the development of leaders amongst high school students while guiding them through the college selection process. I was charged with developing a session specifically designed to teach students critical lessons needed to be successful their first year in College. I was able to share my story of how I came from a disadvantaged neighborhood and a low-income family and was still able to achieve my goal of getting accepted to college. Fortunately, I was able to call some of the seniors from the high school's peers as they achieved the goal of entering college the next year.
  
  

  At the end of my Sophomore year at OSU I noticed that the psych department needed an organization that motivated, encouraged and equipped minorities in psychology and other related fields to succeed in their academics and future endeavors. As a Black, underprivileged, first-generation college student, I knew that I needed support and encouragement to get me through this college experience. Being one of very few African Americans in my classes and feeling discouraged with my academics and social life, I knew my other minority peers felt the same way. Therefore, a passion to create a safe place of encouragement and motivation for minority students in Psychology arose in my heart. I reestablished ABPsi on the Oklahoma State Campus to make sure the African Americans and other minorities in psychology gained a safe place to learn and develop skills that we would need to succeed during undergraduate and in our future endeavors. To accomplish this I created workshops, panels and documents that helped with professional development, mental health, access to Research Laboratories, access to mentors and information needed to pursue applying to graduate school. I only hope that know this organization stays on campus to helps students like myself succeed and pursue their goals.
  
  

  Lastly, my last year at Oklahoma State University I was able to create a resource closet with my sorority chapter for underprivileged students on campus. I realized that a lot of students on campus came from environments and neighborhoods like mine or worse. Even though we were fortunate enough to get into college that didn’t change the fact that some individuals were still struggling with finances, food insecurities and providing themselves with clothes and other necessities that they needed. Therefore, I suggested that we create a resource closest for underprivileged college students. Fortunately, I was able to implement the closet within my chapter and diversity building on campus. The best part was to see individuals actively benefit from mentorship and resources that I was able to help provide. Therefore, I pledge to continue to serve to my best abilities and I hope others will do so too.

 

• Read Caileb's essay

  Stepping onto campus as a freshman at Oklahoma State I wanted to join a fraternity. I didn’t have too much context of what it would be like and the experiences that it would invite, but one of my best friends said that I’d have the time of my life, so I jumped in. It didn’t take long for me to recognize that this environment I was in was missing something people that looked like me. Initially I didn’t think a lot about it, but as my time in the organization progressed, I realized that there was a depth of perspective and lived experiences that could not be accessed without diversifying the community. Regardless of background or culture, each individual brings something unique to the collective whole and I wanted IFC to reap the benefits of what that could offer. I decided to be the change I wanted to see. The way I was going to change it was to lead boldly. IFC at Oklahoma State has been a force at the University for over 100 years and in all that time there hasn’t been a black president. There hasn’t been a person of color with positional authority that underclassmen can look at and think, “hey, since he did it maybe I can be a part of that too!” The road to accomplish this feat was not easy. My sophomore year I earned a spot on the IFC executive team as the Director of Recruitment, where I challenged chapters to adopt innovative ways of recruiting high school students from diverse places that they hadn’t in the past. This shift in perspective allowed the community to take a step forward. Although this was progress, there was much more ground to take. Halfway through my undergraduate career I took two years off of school to pursue other endeavors in Dallas. During that time I was gone, life in Stillwater kept going. Students graduated, relationships were built, organizations were led, but I wasn’t a part of the work that was being done. In 2019 I decided to come back to campus and despite the challenge of reintegrating into the community after a two-year absence, my goal was still the same. After meeting individually with all of the chapter presidents to share my vision of what IFC could become and running for the highest office, in November of 2019 I was elected as the first black president of the Interfraternity Council at Oklahoma State. History had been made. In a community of nearly 2,000 members, most of whom are white and come from wealthy families, a black student that was raised by a single mom who simply tried to make ends meet, was able to lead. Although this was a great accomplishment, my work wasn’t finished. The most challenging experience that I had as president came in June as the world saw George Floyd brutally murdered by a police officer and the subsequent racial unrest that was magnified in our country. The veil of systemic racism and inequity was removed at the macro-level, which I hoped would trickle down to my community. As both a black man in America and as the president of this organization I felt the responsibility to respond--to acknowledge the elephant of underrepresentation and apathy in the room. I gathered the 21-chapter presidents to discuss the events and our part in it. The conversation began with immediate reservation and apathy from the presidents because they did not see race as an issue for our community. They didn’t have any first-hand experience with it, so they assumed it didn’t exist. They felt there was no need for us to say or do anything. My initial feelings were hurt and frustration with the lack of care and perspective my peers had. I tried a variety of different approaches to give them perspective: facts, figures, statistics, but was met with indifference. After weeks of getting nowhere I decided to get advice from trusted mentors and faculty which led me to sharing my story as a black man living in nearly all-white communities my whole life. Instead of inundating them with intellectual information I went straight for the heart. I shared with them both the overt and covert racism that I had fallen victim to, the looks of disdain and judgement coming from friends and foes alike, and the divide I recognized was prevalent at OSU. It was this sharing of lived experiences that unlocked compassion in the presidents.
  
  

  The picture that seemed so disjointed and disconnected on this issue was finally colored. “The world changes according to the way people see it, and if you can alter, even by a millimeter, the way people look at reality, then you can change it.” Over the next few weeks I continued the conversation with the presidents, explaining why it was necessary for us to respond as a community and challenging their thinking. I challenged them with what it could look like for us to create an environment that welcomes people that look and think differently than they do. These conversations were not easy, but slowly the monologue became a dialogue and minds started to open more to the reality that people have different life experiences, which brings incredible value that cannot be neglected. After about a month, we were able to come together as a community to raise awareness, increase education to our membership, and create practical initiatives that welcome BIPOC and those with diverse backgrounds on campus. This experience taught me resilience in more ways than one. I’ve learned how vital it is, no matter the odds or numbers, to engage in hard conversations that yield results. That is how change is realized. I learned that perspective invites growth, inequity cannot be tolerated, and ignorance is not an excuse for stagnancy. The demographic of the community hasn’t changed substantially over the past few years, but I believe that because of the strides made, we can look forward to continued growth.