Scholarships And Mentoring Programs Geared Toward Ethnic Groups

Back when Alexander Twilight earned his Bachelor's degree, tuition might have cost a few hundred dollars a year. It was 1823 when Twilight, who was said to be born to an African-American father and a white mother in a free Vermont, became the first known black person to have obtained a degree from a college or university. He accomplished this at a private liberal arts college in the town where he was born and went on to become a preacher, grammar school principle and, according to The Vermont Encyclopedia, the first African-American to serve in the Vermont legislature - for that matter, perhaps, any state legislature.

Barack Obama, in being sworn in Jan. 20, 2009 as the nation's 44th President, accomplished another first in black history - and many minorities like him and Twilight these days have obtained Bachelor's degrees. Black students who are considering the same have a wide variety of scholarships intended almost exclusively for them, including scholarships from organizations such as the United Negro College Fund and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Mentoring is also a component of scholarship programs. They include scholarships from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Jackie Robinson Foundation. In addition to peer and professional mentors, Jackie Robinson Foundation scholarships include leadership training, internship placements, networking opportunities and more. Scholarships from the Jackie Robinson Foundation cover the costs for all four years of a Bachelor's degree program and, as a result of this combination of factors, the foundation's website says, nearly all of its scholarship recipients graduate.

Some suggest that mentoring might even start before the college and university level. There are, according to an excerpt of the book, Every Monday Matters on the Oprah Winfrey website, some 15 million youngsters in need of mentors. Matilda Cuomo, founder and chair of the Mentoring USA, mother of New York State Governor and wife of a former New York City Mayor, is featured in an online interview with Dr. Mehmet Oz citing challenges particularly when three or four children are raised by a single working parent. Where Mentoring USA services in the New York City area, a group known as Washington State Mentors works to fill in the gap there.

Black men and women who join groups such as the National Black MBA Association and the National Association of Black Accountants have scholarship opportunities in schools and their communities, as well as opportunities to serve as mentors. The National Association of Black Accountants, based in Greenbelt, Md., has student chapters at colleges and universities throughout the United States and offers members opportunities to vie for scholarships, national awards and "distinguished collegian" recognitions.

The National Black MBA Association in Chicago offers scholarships and fellowships of $1,000 to $15,000 to students in undergraduate, graduate and doctorate degree programs. National Black MBA Association Chapters in Central Florida and San Francisco extend scholarship opportunities to members as well.

In metropolitan New York, a National Black MBA Association chapter in addition to an annual scholarship gala, offers CASH - an acronym for College Awareness Symbolizes Hope. The CASH Program, designed to help African-American high school students understand the advantages of graduating high school and obtaining a college degree, enlists working professionals to mentor groups of students. The students compete for prizes as teams as they learn about everything from choosing a college or university to enhancing skills such as essay writing and public speaking.