15 ANNUAL HONORS AWARDS TH DINNER
The Graves Honors Program (GHP), a component of Morgan State University’s Clara I. Adams Honors College, is a Professional Development Program for Honor Students in the Graves School of Business and Management (GSBM). The foundation of the program are professional development seminars and activities designed to enhance and expand students’ academic achievement with exposure to real life work experiences. Students participate in Experiential Learning Activities (ELA) which include a guest speaker series, development and case study workshops, service activities, and business-related trips designed to provide the honors students with an in-depth view of the professional world in which they will operate. Students are presented with an opportunity to hone their business research skills, build social confidence, practice group collaboration, and strengthen their leadership capabilities. The activities also include participation in community service projects. Emphasis is placed on the three fundamental priorities of the Honors Program: Performance, Leadership and Service. As the program is fortunate enough to have the sponsorship of a few large companies representing a variety of industries, our students are positioned to receive coveted post-graduate offers and assignments with renown industry leaders and prestigious graduate schools.
LearnmoreaboutourEarly Careers programs and open opportunities Professional Preparedness & Experiential Learning Program Program Objective: For those returning students, please be sure to check with faculty about the Aon PROPEL mentoring program for the ’23- ’24 academic year. Commercial Risk Solutions Health Solutions Reinsurance Solutions Wealth Solutions $75B + $180B $45B+ $4.1T of bound premium placed annually of healthcare premium directed annually of bound premium placed annually of assets under advisement Mentorship Exposure Actualize Launch The Aon PROPEL Program will build connections with Morgan State University students that provides career preparedness and learning at different stages of their college journey.Through exposure to Aon and the professional and financial servicesindustry, Aon aims to engage, mentor,educate and develop students as they prepare to pursue their careers and enter the workforce as young professionals.Aon’s market position as a professional services firm makes us ideally situated to introduce students to the multitude of opportunities that lay ahead through this program. B uildin g a B e t t e r T o m o r r o w Aon sends congratulations to all the Graves Honors Program students.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2023 GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM WITH HIGH DISTINCTION Elan Jones Jayla Pope Dimitri Watat Kaitlyn Hodge Torrey Rogers WITH DISTINCTION Donald Spencer HONORABLE MENTION Kennedy Sampson Amari Jangha OUTSTANDING FIRST YEAR STUDENT Sirray Smith Taylor Winchester OUTSTANDING SECOND YEAR STUDENT Jared Patterson Kayla Holt OUTSTANDING THIRD YEAR STUDENT Kendall McCullough Jade Nieves-Calderon MARCIA R. TUCK AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN SERVICE Ashia Abdullah Kaitlyn Hodge Kennedy Sampson WELLS FARGO FAST TRACK AWARD Josiah Charles Sh’ton Pickering GRAVE HONORS PROGRAM EXCELLENCE IN EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING ACTIVITIES Christian Covington Jourdan Page Seydina Salla THE BERT J. HASH, JR. AWARD Donald Spencer Dimitri Watat GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM INITIATIVE & INNOVATION Chukwuemeka Martins MayKayla Wilson ALLEN A. BOSTON AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN PERFORMANCE Elan Jones Jayla Pope STANLEY W. TUCKER AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN LEADERSHIP Torrey Rogers, II Amari Jangha Audrey Sarah Tchoumi Feunou EARL G. GRAVES, SR. LEGACY AWARD SPONSOR Robyn Perkins | Aon Travon McCain | Aon
CEREMONY OrdOFer EARL G. GRAVES 15TH ANNUAL AWARDS DINNER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT HONORS PROGRAM MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY RENAISSANCE HARBORPLACE HOTEL | BALTIMORE, MD THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 6:00 p.m. 6:15 p.m. Keynote Address Reception Awards Program Hosts & Hostesses Welcome & Occasion Invocation Dinner Student Award Presentations Introduction of Speaker 7:00 p.m. Ms. Elan Jones Ms. Natalie Madeira Cofield Former Assistant Administrator for the SBA; Award-winning Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Political Appointee and Economic Activist 8:00 p.m. Alma Mater VERSE 1 Fair Morgan, we love thee, so tried and so true, Our hearts at thy name thrill with pride; We owe thee allegiance, we pledge thee our faith, A faith which shall ever abide. CHORUS We pledge thee our love, we pledge thee our faith, Whatever the future may bring, And thus our devotion, fidelity too, And homage we pay as we sing. VERSE 2 Fair Morgan, as onward the years quickly fly, And thou livest in memory sweet. We bring thee our laurels whatever they be, And lay them with joy at thy feet. Mrs. Kaitlyn Hodge Dr. Fikru Boghossian, Dean Dr. Fikru Boghossian, Dean Dr. Ali Emdad, Associate Dean Ms. Jayla Pope Presentation of Gift Earl G. Graves, Sr. Legacy Award Reflections Acknowledgements & Closing Remarks Mr. Torrey Rogers Dr. Fikru Boghossian, Dean Dr. Samuel J. Deal Mr. Dimitri Watat Aon Dr. Samuel J. Deal Graves Honors Program Director
MMG CONGRATULATES THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM
Welcome Welcome Welcome and thank you for joining us for the 15th Annual Graves Honors Awards Dinner. Each year we gather on this momentous occasion to celebrate one of Morgan State University’s most important core values—Excellence. As an institution of higher education, it is excellence in scholarship that anchors our foundation and propels our purpose. Tonight, we will recognize the excellence of our Graves Honors Program scholars. I extend my sincere thanks to the Earl G. Graves School of Business and Management for once again hosting this important event and making this opportunity to celebrate the success of our students possible. It is my profound honor to be in your presence and personally recognize the many scholars who have cleaved to this concept of excellence, particularly academic excellence, and succeeded not only within the traditional classroom setting but beyond the walls of this National Treasure institution and experienced success in the great classroom of life. This evening is about you and all the dedicated hard work you invested to soar, rising to the top of your class. We are all proud of you and wish you continued success beyond your time at Morgan. When we talk about Growing the Future, Leading the World, we are indeed talking about students like those we celebrate here tonight. We look to them to build upon their success at Morgan to become the innovators and leaders of tomorrow. This is also an occasion to acknowledge those who have had a motivating hand in contributing to this success—the professors, advisors, parents, guardians and family members. Thank you, for there are often many unseen hands in the making of something great. Congratulations to the Graves Honors Program and this evening’s scholars. Kind Regards, David K. Wilson, President PRESIDENT'S GREETING DAVID K. WILSON MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT
Welcome Welcome A very pleasant evening to one and all! Thank you for being with us today. To those of you who have supported the Graves Honors Program since its inception and to the new supporters, I extend a warm welcome. During the last couple of years we experienced many challenges primarily caused by the pandemic. We took the challenges as opportunities to innovate and, with the aid of advancement in technology, we survived and thrived. Our faculty and students adapted to delivering programs online, remotely, and by MorganFlex. The University made significant investment in technology and faculty development so as not to skip-a-beat. On behalf of our students, faculty, and staff, I sincerely thank and acknowledge every one of you who extended help to us, in Time, Talent, and Treasure (3Ts), for making this, the 15th Annual Honors Awards Dinner, a success. I say you are celebrating, as we do, the fruits of your generosity. Today, as I end my service as Dean after a decade, and my tenure at Morgan after 32 years, I would like to applaud our students who are being recognized for their successes. Each one of them has made us proud. This is just the beginning of their journey to great heights. Professor Samuel Deal’s leadership in shepherding this Program for the last several years has been exemplary. Thank you Sam! It has been my honor to serve as Dean of the Graves School of Business and Management. Again, THANK YOU!! Fikru H. Boghossian, Ph.D. Professor and Dean DEAN'S GREETING DR. FIKRU H. BOGHOSSIAN, EARL G. GRAVES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT PROFESSOR AND DEAN
Welcome Welcome Good Evening, It is a great honor and pleasure to welcome you to the 15th Annual Graves Honors Awards Dinner. We are here to celebrate the graduation of an outstanding class; a distinguished class; a formidable class. To our Games Honors students, we applaud you for the distinction and excellence that you have brought to the Graves Honors Program, the graves School, and the University. It is through your eep commitment and you innovative efforts that the Program continues to adapt and improve, to meet every challenge successfully as we move forward into the future. The education you have received at Morgan has nourished not just your minds but your spirits, enriched not just your brains, but your hears. This evening as we celebrate all Graves Honors students, we appreciate the contributors of their parents, professors, administrators, and staff for all of their highly valued roles. We acknowledge our sponsors and alumni for their outstanding support. I would be remiss if I did not mention the Graves Honors Advisory Board members and their vision and guidance. We are fortunate to benefit from their wisdom and vast experience in making the Program successful. I extend the warmest congratulations to our graduating students. Dream big, reach far, lead the world! Thank you. Ali Emdad ASSOCIATE DEAN'S GREETING ALI EMDAD, PHD EARL G. GRAVES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATE DEAN
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM AND AWARDEES!
STUDENTS COMPLETING THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM WITH HIGH DISTINCTION Elan Jones (GPA: 4.0) is a graduating senior majoring in Finance at Morgan State University. She is graduating Summa Cum Laude with a 4.0 GPA while working as a full-time intern at Lockheed Martin. She is a Fall 2021 initiate and a member of the Always Divine Alpha Delta Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. During the 2022-2023 academic school year, she served as President of the chapter and has previously served as Historian and Corresponding Secretary. Elan has an immense commitment to change, exhibited in everything she does. Throughout her matriculation, Elan has competed in multiple case competitions. These competitions have allowed her and her team to advise numerous companies professionally. She has had the privilege to attend Harvard Business School’s Summer Venture in Management Program and participate in Goldman Sachs’ HBCU Market Madness Case Competition. As a result of competing, she won Morgan State University $500,000. Upon graduation, Elan plans to work as a Contract Manager for Lockheed Martin and return to the National Treasure for her MBA. ELAN JONES Students Students DISTINCTION OF Jayla Pope (GPA: 4.0), originally from South Bend Indiana, is a graduating Senior in Management with a concentration in Human Resource Management and a minor in Spanish. Throughout her matriculation through Morgan State, she has made accomplishments that reflect her studious nature, some of which include : study abroad experiences, being a Boeing Scholar, becoming the recipient of the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship and scholarship recipient from the National Forum for Black Public Administrators. Jayla has had the opportunity to gain work experience for well known companies such as Lockheed Martin and Hilton, where she has worked in roles in People Development and Learning and Development. Currently, Jayla serves as an Americorp Immigrant Integration specialist where she helps those in the community with tax and citizenship services. With her accomplishments, Jayla has been able to maintain a 4.0 GPA , while still managing to get involved with on campus activities and organizations such as SHRM (Society of Human Resource Management). In the future, Jayla desires to continue her travels abroad, where she can further pursue her language learning, and work in roles that allow her to interact with people and solve problems. JAYLA POPE
STUDENTS COMPLETING THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM WITH HIGH DISTINCTION Dimitri Watat (GPA: 3.991) is a graduating senior finance major at the Earl G. Graves School of Business and Management. During his matriculation at Morgan, he has enjoyed different roles and positions that have aided his personal and professional development. One such role has been serving as the President of Morgan State University’s African Student Organization for the 2022-2023 academic school year. Dimitri has also served as a student manager for the men’s basketball team and as a co-founder and coach for the new soccer club on campus. One of his favorite things about Dimitri’s time at Morgan has been his time competing in case studies and hackathons. He competed in 10 case studies and hackathons hosted by companies such as AT&T, Under Armour, The National Black MBA Association, Zillow, and others, with his avorite being the inaugural Goldman Sachs HBCU Market Madness competition, where he and his team secured $500,000 in funding for Morgan State. Lastly, he enjoyed working with brilliant students this semester as they collectively developed Morgan State’s first student-led hackathon: Morgan Hacks. Dimitri will attend Harvard Business School’s Summer Venture in Management program this summer and start full-time as a Business Insights Leadership Development Program (BUILD) Fellow with McKinsey & Company. He is eternally grateful for his time at the National Treasure and look forward to how will continue to Grow the Future and Lead the World as an alumnus. DIMITRI WATAT Students Students DISTINCTION OF Kaitlyn Hodge (GPA: 3.941) is a senior Business Administration major from Queens, New York. As a freshman in high school, Kaitlyn was unsure of what kind of career path she wanted to pursue. After joining the culinary arts program of her high school, she decided to start college as a Business major. Joining that program helped Kaitlyn realize that her true passion in life was to own a business and become a chef. After four years of matriculation, she has been able to take advantage of various opportunities on and off campus and develop her own small business selling sweets and treats. Kaitlyn looks forward to taking her degree and using her skills to become a successful business leader. KAITLYN HODGE
STUDENTS COMPLETING THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM WITH HIGH DISTINCTION Torrey “Deuce” Rogers II (GPA: 3.733) is a graduating senior marketing major here at the illustrious Morgan State University and they are proud to announce that they will graduate with a 3.918 from the Honors Program of the Earl G Graves School of Business and Management. They intend to use their degree to eventually own their own marketing firm so I can help businesses expand internationally, and also help Black businesses grow. In their matriculation at Morgan, Rogers has gained a lot of experience in and out of the classroom in leadership, scholarship and overall excellence. They have owned Deuce’s Dollar Dormdega for almost five years and currently are the Marketing Intern for En Root Travel LLC, and have diligently worked to promote their inaugural HBCU Senior Class Trip to the Dominican Republic. Outside of business and academics, Rogers is heavily affiliated with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People as they have served as Chapter Mister, 1st Vice President and President during their matriculation at Morgan State University. As President, the organization has held several events, community services and initiatives to enrich the Morgan State and Baltimore City community. Under their leadership and vision, the chapter has been awarded accolades like Co-Ed Organization of the Year. Finally, Rogers is a proud Spring 23 initiate of the Honorable Alpha Chapter of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Incorporated. Through this fraternity, they have met a lot of great people who all have the common goal of elevating Black people in this nation and they are excited to see the numerous ways they can help out, despite graduating the same semester. TORREY ROGERS Students Students DISTINCTION OF
STUDENTS COMPLETING THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM WITH DISTINCTION Donald Spencer (GPA: 3.733) was born in Silver Spring, Maryland on May 16, 2001. He lived in various cities in Prince George’s County where he completed elementary, middle, and high school. In high school, he was part of the Science & Technology and Dual Enrollment programs. When applying to colleges, he received scholarships from a few schools, including the full-ride Martin D. Jenkins Scholarship from Morgan State University. The scholarship was one of the factors that led to his matriculation at Morgan State where he maintained a cumulative 3.7 GPA. During his years at the illustrious university, Donald went through trials and tribulations trying to find the right major for him, but finally ended up being content with a major in business administration. With his degree in the major, Donald will be working with one of the “Big 4”, Deloitte, as an analyst. He received this offer from an internship he completed with them in the Summer of 2022. Outside of his academics, Donald spends most of his time in recreational modeling and traveling. He was the Vice President of Modelz of Distinction where he led a team of 70 members to produce multiple 500-person capacity shows with budgets ranging from $7- 10k. He also was the King of Kush Models Entertainment which required heavy team leadership. DONALD SPENCER Students Students DISTINCTION OF
Amari is earning his Bachelor’s degree in Marketing. Amari arrived at Morgan State University (MSU) to study Accounting but eventually came to his senses over the pandemic and made the best switch for him. His time at MSU has genuinely been one of the most incredible experiences he has ever had. Morgan State, specifically the Graves Honors Program (GHP), has taken Amari up in the air and across state lines on multiple occasions, not only to benefit from glorious exposure to new places, people, and livelihoods but also has given his LinkedIn the ammo it needed to garner recruiter attention. Amari wishes he had the words to express gratitude for his time at the National Treasure. Amari quickly considers becoming a Bear one of his top three decisions. STUDENTS COMPLETING THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM WITH HONORABLE MENTIONS Kennedy Sampson is an honors Marketing Major from Waldorf, MD. She has spent her matriculation defining her voice and interests in the marketing world. Kennedy became interested in marketing when she started her own hair business during her freshman year. From then on, she has completed internships within the corporate marketing realm as well as digital marketing world. The Graves Honors Program in the School of Business has opened so many doors and redefined the corporate world while cultivating her as a professional in a fast-paced and ever evolving world. She can not wait to open doors for new students and make everyone proud! KENNEDY SAMPSON Students Students DISTINCTION OF AMARI JANGHA
Ms. Perkins is a Program Manager in Aon’s Intellectual Property Solutions. She began her career at Aon in 2003 at Aon’s US Retail operations service center. During her over 20 years with Aon, she has moved through operational roles that support the capabilities and services that are offered to clients. Her expertise relates primarily around process developments and improvements. Finding better ways to something is her key objective in everything she leads and supports! During her 20-year career, Ms. Perkins got both a Bachelor of Business Administration and Graduate degree from University of Maryland, both with a specialization in project management. She holds a PMP credential from the Project Management Institute and a Lean Six Sigma Greenbelt. 2023 RECIPIENTS THE EARL G. GRAVES SR. LEGACY AWARD IS PRESENTED TO AN OUTSTANDING LEADER WHOSE SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO HIGHER EDUCATION HAVE HAD A SUBSTANTIAL, LASTING IMPACT ON THE ACADEMIC, SOCIAL AND PROFESSIONAL OF YOUNG PEOPLE. THE EARL G. GRAVES LEGACY AWARD ROBYN PERKINS Program Manager, Intellectual Property Solutions, Aon Mr. McCain is an Associate on the Capital Markets team for Aon's New Ventures Group. He began his career at Aon in March of 2020 in the Chicago office. Prior to joining Aon, he studied Economics at the University of Missouri. After completing his undergraduate studies, he began his career at Fidelity Investments where he served as a Financial Representative then a Relationship Manager for the firm's Wealth Management business. Most recently, Mr. McCain served as a Private Wealth Management Associate at Alliance Bernstein, where he assisted in managing and investing assets on behalf of high-net- worth individuals and identifying opportunities to grow the business. TRAVON MCCAIN Associate, IP Capital Markets, New Venture Group, Aon
Natalie has been named one of the most powerful women in business by Entrepreneur Magazine... An award-winning entrepreneur, philanthropist, political appointee, and economic activist, Natalie has provided some of the nation's most prominent CEOs of billion-dollar organizations, executives of global brands, senior advisors to the White House, mayors of leading national cities, and community activists and leaders with inspiration, insight, and advisement. NATALIE MADEIRA COFIELD KEYNOTE SPEAKER 15th ANNUAL GRAVES HONORS As a presidentially-appointed Assistant Administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration, she advised on the deployment of $1.2 trillion in funding and was directly responsible for architecting programs that distributed $200 million in funding to ecosystems throughout the country during the greatest economic crisis in modern history. As the former head of the Office of Women's Business Ownership at the U.S. Small Business Administration, she funded the largest expansion of the Women's Business Center network in the history of SBA, with a total of 146 centers located in every state in the US, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Natalie is the founder and former CEO of Walker's Legacy, the most prestigious digital platform to empower women through entrepreneurship, and its adjoined nonprofit arm, the Walker's Legacy Foundation, where she established a $25,000 funded scholarship for enterprising women at her alma mater, Howard University. In 2019, Cofield was named the inaugural Entrepreneur-in-Residence for the District of Columbia leading Mayor Muriel Bowser's 202Creates Program providing entrepreneurship advice to creative economy businesses within the District of Columbia. An honors tech graduate (where she was mentored by CIOS of two of America's leading Fortune 500 companies) Natalie leveraged her coding experience to build a career centered on empowering businesses, entrepreneurs, women and underrepresented communities. Her work has been featured on and by Inc, Time, CNN, NYTimes, Fast Company, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Business Insider, Black Enterprise, Essence, and EBONY, among others. She was named a Champion of Small Business by the Association of Enterprising Opportunity, was selected among 137 cover-story business leaders and entrepreneurs from across the nation for her response to COVID-19 where she graced Entrepreneur Magazine's July/August 2020 edition cover. She has also been named as one of the 100 Most Powerful Washingtonians by the Washington Business Journal. An avid traveler, Cofield has visited more than 46 countries and counting. Website: www.nataliecofield.com | Instagram: @nmcofield | Twitter: @nmcofield
EARL G. GRAVES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT HONORS PROGRAM DEANS Dr. Fikru Boghossian Dr. Ali Emdad DIRECTOR Dr. Samuel. J. Deal PROJECT COORDINATOR Ms. April Robinson ACADEMIC SUPPORT Dr. LaTeri McFadden ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF Ms. Denise McNeill With thanks to Dr. Pamela Queen, Dr. XingXing Zu and Dr. Sheela Thiruvadi of the Graves School Faculty Honors Committee ADVISORY BOARD SPECIAL THANKS CHAIR Stanley Tucker, MMG Capital Group MEMBERS Mr. Allen Boston, Ernst & Young LLP (Retired) Mr. Randall Brown, The Vanguard Group Mr. Allen Hankinson, The Travelers Companies Mr. Lawrence McRae, Corning, Inc. Ms. Dionne L. Spencer, Legg Mason Ms. Marcia Tuck, SunTrust Bank (Retired) Mr. Gareth P. Warren, Towne Park EX OFFICIO Dr. Karen Proudford Ms. Barbara Blount-Armstrong, MSU Foundation Mr. Bert Hash, Municipal Employees Credit Union (Retired) Mr. Upshure "Sonny" Coard-Ill, The Boeing Company EXECUTIVE-IN-RESIDENCE Mr. Upshure "Sonny" Coard-Ill Office of the President Office of the Provost Office of the Dean, GSBM TMC Event Design Thrive In Design Fleurs d'Ave MSU Foundation MSU Office of Student Activities Clara Adams Honors College Accounting and Finance Department Information Science and Systems Department Business Administration Department Entrepreneurial Development and Assistance Center MSU Office of Human Resources MSU Office of Public Relations Save THE DATE 16th Annual Graves Honors Awards Dinner May 18, 2024 Location TBD Join us for an evening of honor and fellowship, celebrating the outstanding achievement & talent of our Honors students.
Member - Board of Regents 2023 May 18, 2023
Personal branding is crucial in accurately portraying our student's academic and professional reputations. The Graves Honors Professional Development seminars focused on several Personal Branding topics during our 2022-2023 academic year. With that in mind, our goal is always to provide our students with tools that enable them to have options as distinguished honors students today and in their future careers. With the help of our corporate partners, we focused on helping our students define and craft their stories through practical exercises, targeted assignments, and practice! For example, two fall semester assignments included uploading a resume and crafting an elevator pitch. We defined it, explained its importance, provided examples, and requested each student to submit their pitch. During a seminar, students practiced their elevator pitches during a Pitch Competition, preparing them for one of our most engaging sessions: Mock Interviews and Elevator Pitch session hosted by the Calvert Street Capital Partners team. The team was genuinely impressed with the confidence and professionalism of our students. The Lincoln Financial Group hosted another seminar. They highlighted the importance of having a professional LinkedIn profile and including a link on your resume. Another assignment required students to upload their LinkedIn profiles to support and reinforce that presentation. Networking is a weekly highlight of the seminars; it allows our students to engage with professionals who have already been in their shoes. For this reason, we were pleased to provide a Dining Etiquette activity hosted by the Boeing corporation. This event capped off a week of special activities, including a Negotiation seminar and a Boeing case competition. The candid feedback from our case competition judges will be the basis for future seminars. A few weeks ago, we were excited to have another partner, CINTAS, to provide our students with professional headshots at no charge. When our students’ names are mentioned in rooms they’re not in, what will be the impact? With a continued focus on professional development and supportive mentorship, we expect nothing less than excellence. Submitted by: April Robinson, GHP Project Coordinator Personal Personal BRANDING GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM:
THE GRAVES HONORS PROGRAM REPORT Professional Development. That is the official course name for the Graves Honors Program (GHP). This academic year has truly been a year of development, for the program and for the students. As a component of the university’s Clara I. Adams Honors College, the GHP benefited from the increased communication afforded it through the Honors Coordinators’ meetings. As the Honors College is being reimagined, we are able to share ideas and concepts that make our various school programs both consistent and unique. Programmatically, we were fortunate to have Ms. April Robinson join the GHP as Project Coordinator. Her experience has provided additional support and development to an already strong program. Our corporate sponsors provided us with the support and environments necessary to meet their future employment needs. Boeing continues to provide financial, programmatic, and professional support to the GHP. Having senior members of the Boeing Company advocate on behalf of Morgan has made a significant impact to Morgan’s Honors Programs, especially in the School of Business & Management and the School of Engineering. The GHP was particularly developed by Aon’s mentorship program labeled PROPEL - Professional Preparedness & Experiential Learning Program. The program provides mentors for students in the program for up to four (4) years. Aon will supplement that support with internships and possible employment upon graduation. Our other sponsors, such as the Real Estate Executive Council (REEC) and Lincoln Financial Group continue to provide not just industry information, but concepts and principles that will help develop our students beyond their careers. We truly appreciate and thank all of our partners and sponsors. The skills learned in the GHP are not just for academic mastery, but are intended to be utilized practically as our students assume their rightful positions in the “real world”. We practiced some of those skills through Calvert Street Capital Partners’ Interview Workshop. Tonight, you will witness, first hand, a bit of this development by seeing some of our students in action. Thank you, Associate Dean Ali Emdad, for the consistent support you have provided. We also thank our Advisory Board and GHP Faculty Committee for their guidance and experience in shaping our programs and ultimately, our students. A special “Thanks” to Dean Fikru Boghossian, who will be retiring as Dean of the Business School at the end of this academic year. I sincerely thank Dean Boghossian for his support and encouragement to the Graves Honors Program. All the Best, Dean! Enjoy the next season of your life! Finally, thank all of you, our village, as we grow the future and lead the world! Our future looks bright because of your support and encouragement to our amazing Honors students. Thank you!
2023