Joy Applewhite, a Senior Psychology major from Prentiss, Mississippi, has become the first ETS Scholarship recipient at Alcorn State University (ASU). The ETS Presidential Scholarship is a scholarship sponsored by the Educational Testing Services. The ETS Presidential Scholarship is the Presidential Scholarship for Historically Black College and University (HBCU) students that pays for the recipient’s tuition. Scholarship recipients are chosen based upon academics and extracurricular activities.
In order to receive the scholarship, Applewhite was required to submit application questions, a transcript, as well as a letter of recommendation from the President of Alcorn State University, Dr. Alfred Rankins Jr. She expressed her joy for receiving the scholarship by stating, “It feels very good because I applied for it unware that my application would be chosen. I wanted to make sure that they were aware students from Alcorn are achieving. When I received the email, it was a nice surprise because I had forgotten that I applied.”
Applewhite’s goals after graduating from ASU is to attend law school. She plans to relocate to the Washington, D.C. area to spend the next three years of her life studying law. She has made her mark on Alcorn’s campus over the past four years by being a part of various clubs and organizations such as the Gamma Phi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, P.O.W.E.R., Model of United Nations Competition Team and the Psych Society.
Applewhite has also been a Dean’s Scholar and President’s Scholar during her duration at ASU. She explains why keeping her GPA high is important by saying, “It is definitely a goal to keep my GPA high so that I may be considered for law school scholarships as well.” Her advice to other Alcornites is to keep thriving and apply for all possible opportunities.