Tom Joyner Foundation’s First Full Ride Scholar Inducted into Phi Beta Kappa

Nov. 20, 2011 - PRLog -- The Tom Joyner Foundation’s first Full Ride Scholar, Britney Wilson of Brooklyn, New York, will be inducted into the 59th class of Phi Beta Kappa, Gamma of Washington, DC.

The Foundation, founded and led by nationally syndicated media personality and philanthropist Tom Joyner, chose Wilson in 2008 as its first winner of a “Full Ride Scholarship” that has covered her full tuition and stipends for room and board (on-campus only) and books.

“From the moment I first met Britney, I knew she was going to go on to do great things,” said Joyner, whose foundation has awarded more than $60 million to keep students enrolled in black colleges. “I know being selected Phi Beta Kappa is just one of her many accomplishments. She’s a perfect example of how my beloved black colleges are educating some of the brightest minds in this country.”

Wilson, a senior at Howard University majoring in English, has maintained a 4.0 grade point average during her time at Howard University in Washington, D.C.  

"I met Britney as a freshman and it was very clear to me that she was an extraordinary student committed to making a difference," said Howard University President Sidney A. Ribeau.  "We are extremely proud of her achievements as she joins a prestigious legacy of Howard scholars who are dedicated to leadership and service."

She has been president of the campus’ Sterling Brown English Society, a columnist and opinions editor at 'The Hilltop Newspaper,’ and was a 1st place winner in the undergraduate division of the S. Randolph Edmonds Young Scholars Competition where she presented a paper entitled, “Every Woman in No Man’s Land: Triumphs of the Modern Black Woman at the Expense of the Black Male Character in the Works of Lynn Nottage”.  

"I am very excited about being inducted into Phi Beta Kappa,” Wilson said. “This is something I've worked towards for four years, and it feels great to know that my hard work has paid off. It represents the beginning of the end of a journey that I know would not have been possible without the constant encouragement and support of the Tom Joyner Foundation."

The Foundation’s Full Ride Scholarship program chose Wilson in 2008 because of her outstanding academic record and her desire to attend a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). The Cathedral High School (New York) graduate maintained a 4.0 GPA and excelled in many areas. When chosen as the first Full Ride Scholar, the panel of judges said they were impressed with Wilson’s innate intellect that revealed her ability to discuss Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s foreign policy strategy and in the next sentence discuss the differences between East and West Coast rap music.

Interested in studying law and politics, Wilson has had a distinguished high school career where she has been an active member of the Junior Statesmen Association that led her to spending last summer at Georgetown University. She also is a French and History tutor, a singer in the Gospel for Teen’s Choir and a semi-finalist in the Teen Poetry slam competition that is part of the Urban Word New York City Poets.  For at least two hours week, she is a Teen Health Initiative Peer Educator at the New York Civil Liberties Union.

Founded in 1998, the Tom Joyner Foundation has raised more than $60 million to help keep students enrolled in black colleges.  It has assisted more than 21,000 students and worked with more than 100 HBCUs.  For more information about the Foundation to BlackAmericaWeb.com.

# # #

Foote Communications LLC is a Dallas, TX multi-media company, specializing in public relations, website solutions, multicultural marketing and political strategy and messaging.