All Articles Tagged "Scholarship"
D Wright Way: NBA Star Dorell Wright Teams Up With UNCF For Scholarship Program
(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Dorell Wright has more than basketball on his mind. He wants to help others get a great education.
The NBA Forward-Guard recently partnered with the UNCF (United Negro College Fund) through his own organization, The D Wright Way Foundation, to create the KB3 Scholarship Fund. Named for Wright’s childhood friend, the late Khelcey Barrs III, the fund will assist graduating high school seniors who face difficult challenges in attaining a higher education degree. Barrs was considered a talented young forward. His talent had been attracting interest from major college basketball schools while a high school sophomore. But he collapsed and died from cardiomegaly in 2004 after playing a series of late night basketball games.
The scholarship was officially announced just before the start of the 76ers home game on Sunday. Wright presented a check for $50,000 to UNCF to start the KB3 Scholarship Fund.
Wright joined the NBA in 2004. The D Wright Way Foundation is a public, not-for-profit organization that provides academic and leadership development programs for inner-city youth with limited financial resources.
Get The Care Packages Ready! Celeb Kids On Their Way To College!
zimbio.com
It’s that season again. Some of you have driven your kids to what you hope is their home for the next four years: college. Some of you may have kids who’ll share classes with some of the celebrity kids on the next few pages who are also entering their freshmen year. I tell you, we’ve watched some of them grow before our very eyes! By the way…none of your kids did it alone so congrats to all the parents for helping your kids make it this far!
Another Hip-Hop Child May Be Headed to UCLA, Snoop’s Son Offered Football Scholarship
Source: ESPN.com
Well it’s clear to see where UCLA’s antennas are directed. The university appears to be tired of going after old money, they want to tap into that hip-hop cash cow because after awarding Diddy’s son Justin an unnecessarily controversial full football scholarship, word is they’ve also offered Snoop’s son one.
According to USA Today:
Cordell Broadus, son of rapper Snoop Dogg, received a scholarship offer from UCLA. Broadus will be entering his sophomore year at Diamond Bar High School this fall.
Listed at 6-2 and 185 pounds, he played wide receiver and defensive back for the freshman team last season.
Cordell transferred to Diamond Bar from Long Beach Poly last fall and like UCLA, his coach Ryan Maine told ESPN he likes what he sees so far.
“We’re expecting him to really lead us the next three years. Hopefully get bigger, stronger and keep leading this team.”
Cordell no doubt gets pointers from big snoopy d-o-double-gizzle who coaches how own youth football league. When ESPN asked him how he feels about the paths his older sons are taking—his oldest, Corde, just graduated from Diamond Bar and is headed into the music biz—Snoop said this:
“Both my boys had normal existences. No real drama in the house. No real drama outside. They are all good.”
UCLA is trying to be all good with their hip-hop support too, Cordell still has a few years to make a decision though.
Brande Victorian is the news and operations editor for madamenoire.com. Follow her on twitter @Be_Vic.
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Should Justin Combs Really Come Up Off That Scholarship?
Source: Extratv.com
Diddy’s son Justin is feeling a lot of pressure these days and dealing with backlash that’s totally wrapped up in his race and his wealth, i.e., rich black people problems.
Everyone has an opinion on what the 18-year-old should do with the four-year, $54,000 merit-based (keyword) scholarship he accepted to attend UCLA which has people asking, should he have accepted it in the first place? Should he give it up? Should he donate it? Not to mention, who’s paying for it? But at the end of the day it comes down to one simple fact. Justin Combs, him, himself, and he, earned it all by hard work.
I admit, I was in the donation camp when I first heard the news about his scholarship. I’m pretty sure the ghost of Sallie Mae was haunting my thoughts and all I could think was that he doesn’t really need that money and how cool would it be for another student who will likely have to take out outrageous loans to pay for an education to now have a chance to go to school. Thankfully, looking at comments on the subject from a number of different sites opened my eyes enormously and now I can see I was full-blown trippin.’
The piece I totally missed in this entire discussion and celebration of this young man’s achievement, which has been overshadowed by this scholarship foolishness, is the awesome example Justin is setting for black males, rich and poor alike. If Diddy was our daddy how many of us would be thinking about college? Let along how many of us would have been focused enough to earn a 3.75 GPA while being a star on the football team? That’s not a common story that’s told, especially about black men and no one should try to take away his shine by making him appear to be at fault for working toward academic and athletic excellence and being rewarded for it accordingly. Sure Justin would have likely gone to school for free anyway on his father’s dime, but Diddy didn’t get Justin into school, Justin got himself into school—for free—and I think he’s an amazing example of self-determination and a young man who, as his mother said, “is his own man,” and who will “earn his way through life.” How many rich kids out there can say the same? Certainly not the ones we always talk about in media headlines.
Perhaps it’s the fact that the university had used more than $2 million from student fees to cover an athletic department funding gap the year before that has everyone in a tizzy, but what does that have to do with Justin? Why is this boy in some ways being punished for excelling simply because of who his father is? As many people have pointed out, is this type of fuss ever made over the children of white CEOs and businessmen who could easily afford to pay for their kid’s education but don’t because their children excelled in the classroom and earned free rides. Why is Justin any different?
With the taxpayer nonsense killed thanks to a statement from UCLA that reinforced the fact that this scholarship is merit- and not needs-based, people really need to let this go. I feel like this discussion has grown to the level of Obama’s birther debate and people won’t be satisfied until they find some sort of way to take away from the success of a black man and it’s just not fair. Justin needs to be allowed to have his moment and to say when all was said and done that he put himself through college. If he wants to donate his scholarship to someone else, I think that’s amazing. And if he doesn’t that’s amazing as well. We should demand nothing more from him then we do other men from wealthy backgrounds who earn scholarships the same as he did. And when we see a man exceed expectations like this, we should celebrate it without reservation.
What do you think about the Justin Combs scholarship debate? Is there any merit to it?
Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.
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Braylon Edwards Gives Away Season Salary in Scholarships
In 2005, Braylon Edwards, then a rookie for the Cleveland Browns, made a promise to 100 area eighth graders: If they could graduate high school with at least a 2.5 grade-point average and 15 hours’ community service, he would give each of them a $10,000 scholarship.
Six years later, the NFLer is making good on his promise. Seventy-nine of those kids met his criteria and have begun their first year of college in campuses all across the country, including Harvard. In addition to giving away $790,000 in scholarships, Edwards also bought each student a laptop.
“I’m supposed to give people a chance like I was given a chance,” Edwards said.
What’s even more remarkable is Edward’s salary this season as a member of the San Francisco 49ers only totaled $1 million, meaning he nearly gave away his entire salary to provide an opportunity for these kids.
David Gholston, a freshman at Bowling Green State University, told ESPN, “Without this scholarship, I probably wouldn’t be here.”
With news that Edwards was just cut from the 49ers due to an injury, I hope Karma repays the good-hearted athlete for giving local Cleveland kids a chance.
Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.
