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TSU Business Student Receives Three-Year $75,000 Scholarship from Toyota and Jesse Jackson PUSH Program

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Dominique Davis always thought that making good grades would be her pass to free college education. She was right! Davis will not have to worry about fees for the rest of her college career.

On July 18, Davis, a TSU sophomore business administration major, received a $75,000 scholarship offer from Toyota through the Jesse Jackson  Rainbow PUSH Excel program.

Dominique Davis

“I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected as a new Jesse Jackson Fellows Scholar and are being awarded a $25,000 scholarship for the 2018-2019 academic year,” a letter from PUSH said. The scholarship is renewable each year for a maximum of three years.

“I am so excited; this is unbelievable,” said Davis, who is from Danville, Illinois. “I have been praying for this and it finally came through.”

Davis is one of only 10 students from a group of 20 semi-finalists to be selected for the scholarship made possible through a partnership between Toyota and Rainbow PUSH Excel. Applicants must be engineering or business majors, have a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average, with demonstrated participation in community service, and must show need for financial assistance.

As part of the scholarship, Toyota offers successful applicants the opportunity to work at one of their facilities across North America to gain valuable real-world experience, as well as be paired with mentors from Toyota management to help guide the students through the next three years of college. Davis is currently an intern with Nissan in Nashville.

Davis, who has a 3.8 GPA with a concentration in supply chain management, said a family member told her about the scholarship program.

“I immediately said this is a great opportunity,” Davis said. “So I filled out the application and sent it in. I got a call back to go the next step, which included an interview with Toyota. I passed the application phase with the Jesse Jackson committee. I got another call back. And I got the scholarship.”

The third of four children, Davis said from elementary school she always made all A’s.

“Coming out of high school my GPA was great. I told my parents we are not going to pay for college,” Davis said, but her plan did not quite materialize the first year. Although she could have received a full ride to any college in Illinois, Davis said she chose TSU, out of state. As a result, funds she received were not enough to cover her full out-of-state fees.

“We had to take out a loan in my freshman year, and that was hard because my sister had just graduated from the University of Illinois-Champaign, and my parents were stretched,” she said.

Davis said she chose TSU because of the HBCU experience. All through elementary to high school, she had attended predominantly white schools.

“I wanted to attend an HBCU,” said Davis, who credits her parents and her late grandfather for the motivation to do well. “I wanted to get a feel of the culture and Tennessee State felt like home. It felt like the right move to come here. It has been a great experience.”

Davis’ goal is to own a charter school.

“I want to start my own charter school to help kids and make sure they have opportunities that so many other kids may not have,” she said.

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About Tennessee State University

With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 24 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

EVENTS, FEATURED, NEWS

TSU President Glenda Glover Joins Bernice King, Rev. Jesse Jackson and Thousands to Commemorate 50th Anniversary of Selma to Montgomery March

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University President Glenda Glover joined Bernice King, daughter of the late civil rights activists Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King, and others for the “Bloody Sunday” commemorative march in observance of the 50th anniversary of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery March.

TSU President, Dr. Glenda Glover (right) marches the streets of Selma, Alabama with noted civil rights activist, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and others, as they commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery March. (courtesy photo)
TSU President, Dr. Glenda Glover (right) marches the streets of Selma, Alabama with noted civil rights activist, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and others, as they commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery March. (courtesy photo)

President Glover met presidents from Historically Black Colleges and Universities from around the country in Selma, Alabama to celebrate the historic 1965 event. National leaders including the Reverend Jesse Jackson, head of Rainbow PUSH, and Dr. Charles Steele, president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) called for HBCU presidents to make the journey for the anniversary.

“The Selma to Montgomery March is the single most galvanizing moment in our nation’s history in the fight for civil rights, particularly voting rights,” said Dr. Glover. “What happened on the Edmund Pettus Bridge was engrained in the minds of millions of Americans as we watched in horror and disbelief – yet trusting that it would bring about change for all Americans.”

While in Selma, President Glover met with other college presidents, educators, civil rights leaders, students, community organizers, and several service groups. The Selma journey was also significant for Dr. Glover as it gave her the opportunity to memorialize the people and place where thousands of leaders came together to march for the “paramount victory” in the fight for equality.

“I am honored to make the journey to Selma as president of Tennessee State University to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of this historical event. This 50th Anniversary has personal relevance for me because of my father’s role in the Civil Rights Movement in Memphis, Tennessee.  I also appreciate the impressionable role of the TSU Freedom Riders in the Civil Rights Movement. I am pleased to go back to Selma in honor of my father’s memory and in dedication of those who fought for freedom everywhere.”

Glover made a contribution in the name of Tennessee State to Brown A.M.E. Church for $1,000. The church was a starting point for the Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965 and, as the meeting place and offices of SCLC during the Selma Movement.

“We appreciate President Glover’s commitment to advancing education, economics and human rights,” Dr. Steele remarked. “She is clearly a leader in higher education, and brings a unique perspective in engaging students. Glover is dedicated to educating and empowering the next generation of leaders.”

It is estimated that as many as 70,000 people took part in the commemorate march. One of the highlights included President Barack Obama’s address mark at anniversary.