Myia Alston has endured more personal hardship in her 20 years than most people experience in a lifetime. Facing poverty and overcoming the temptations of the streets have helped her…

Mr. Billings is a Vice President at FPA. He joined the firm in 2011 as an analyst for the FPA Multi-Advisor Strategy. Prior to joining FPA, he was a consulting…

ohn Burton is the Founder and CEO of Citizen Strong, an organization that trains everyday citizens to do political opposition research and then deploys that research to impact federal and…

In the ninth grade, Yolanda Covington left behind a combative neighborhood in the South Bronx for "A Better Chance Program" (ABC) at Strath Haven High School in Wallingford, Pennsylvania. Her…

Kelly Cross is committed to opening the markets of the world to those who have long been denied access to them.During his undergraduate years at Princeton, Kelly was a leader…

Marco Ellis, M.D. was selected to the inaugural class of Ron Brown Scholars in 1997. The Scholarship program, funded by the charitable donations of the CAP Foundation, annually selects the…

Dr. Travis Gayles is the Health Officer and Chief of Public Health Services for Montgomery County, Maryland. A 1997 Ron Brown Scholar, he received his BA in Public Policy Studies…

In 1997, Diarra Lamar graduated from Sidney Lanier High School’s Academic Motivational Program in Montgomery, Alabama, one of the toughest accelerated programs in the country. One teacher remembers him as…

Angela graduated as valedictorian of her class at Cass Technical High School. She played flute in the school band and participated in several science clubs. During two internships, Angela explored…

Michelle attended Harvard University, and graduated magna cum laude from the department of English and American Language and Literature. During her years at college, Michelle interned at the Washington, D.C.…

Kelle was on her way to becoming a Wall Street attorney when watching the September 11 attacks happen right in front of her set her on the path to transforming…

Sparlha Swaby is a psychotherapist and singer. Her musical works are heartsongs, prayers, and treasure maps into presence. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, she scored the multi-award-winning feature film Pariah (Sundance),…

Carmelle T. Norice, MD-PhD, is a resident physician at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. She completed a dual MD-PhD degree at Columbia University in the City of New…

Paulson Tuffet’s parents immigrated to the United States from Haiti with dreams of the opportunities their new life would hold. From an early age his parents instilled in him that…

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Originally a resident of Macon, Georgia, Traci Burch moved to Claymont, Delaware and attended Mount Pleasant High School. She excelled in all subjects, ranking in the top one percent of…

A National Achievement Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction, and salutatorian of her senior class, Shirley Delaleu was voted "most scholastic" by her peers at Commack High School on Long Island,…

Maleka Donaldson Gramling is a 2002 graduate of Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology. Along with academics, while in college she dedicated herself to several organizations:…

Melanie Forbes traveled several hours each day to attend the prestigious Governor’s School for Government and International Studies in Richmond. There she was a natural leader in Student Council, the…

Tiffany Griswell grew up in Columbia, North Carolina where she graduated as valedictorian from Columbia High School in 1998. She received a B.S. in Business Administration with honors from the…

Antonia Henry, MD, MPH is a Colorectal Surgeon from the RBS class of 1998. This August, she will join the staff of Metro Health - University of Michigan in Grand…

Leah is the only child of an only child from Mississippi and the oldest boy of twelve from Georgia. She grew up in Jacksonville, FL and graduated from Stanton College…

Christopher Hunter got a BA in Literature from Harvard and a MA and PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Pennsylvania. He lives with his family in Pasadena and…

Born in Northern California, Tiombe Jones' early years had a profound impact on her life's goals. She was inspired to change the lives of people around her; the poverty, addictions,…

In 1998, Marc Knight graduated as Valedictorian of Elmont Memorial High School and was selected to be a Ron Brown Scholar based on his outstanding academic achievements and community service. …

Jon Piper has focused on innovative medical software and imaging solutions for more than fifteen years. He holds a BS in Chemistry in 2002 and a MS ABT in Computer…

Jennifer graduated from University of Virginia law school in May 2005 and is currently working for a law firm in New York. Though she is excited to be back in…

Tomeka Suber's strengths and interests lie in the sciences and in community service. Tomeka spent much of her high school career working with her local chapter of the March of…

Graduating at the top of her class at Palo Alto High School in Palo Alto, California, Sara Whetstone also developed strong leadership skills in the community. She served as president…

Graduating at the top of her class from Willingboro High School in New Jersey, Tracy Wynter was honored with the Superintendent's Pride Award for academic excellence. Of Jamaican descent, she…

Allen Yancy is LexShares’ Director of Investments, responsible for underwriting the firm’s investment opportunities. Prior to joining LexShares, Mr. Yancy practiced for over seven years at Weil, Gotshal & Manges…

The faculty at Rich South (Illinois) High School usually selects a senior as Outstanding Journalist, but Martine Caverl earned this prestigious award as a junior, the same year she received…

Morgan Dooley, a pre-med student in her second year at Emory University, holds awards for the highest average in English, Chemistry, and Spanish at Atlanta’s B.E. Mays High School. She…

Matthew Espy was the best mathematics student that the chair of Chamblee High School's math department had encountered in twenty-seven years of teaching. Matthew took AP Calculus BC and AP…

Katori is an American playwright, journalist, and actress who continues to use her mind and her pen to further the legacy of her forefathers and to help young African Americans…

Dr. Tiffany Jackson is a practicing gynecologist with a focus on minimally invasive gynecologic surgery. Dr. Jackson was born and raised in Bryan, Texas and attended public schools. The middle…

Charly Jeune graduated from George Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles, where he was the 1999 Valedictorian. He was also the lone tenth grader to make the 1996-1997 Academic…

Kiya Jones currently interns for the Ron Brown Scholar Program. Prior to that she served as the California political field director for a national nonprofit, where she helped coordinate grassroots…

As a Capacity Building Specialist for Fair Chance DC, Dorothy Smith supports youth-serving nonprofit organizations working in DC's must underserved communities to increase their impact by providing expertise and leadership…

Research Interests: Global Water, Sanitation and Hygiene; Environmental Microbiology; Drinking Water Quality; Diarrheal DiseaseFor the last five years, Dr. McMahan has studied household drinking water testing and treatment as a…

Sean graduated from Tampa Bay Technical High School in Tampa, FL. Thanks to support from family and friends like the Ron Brown Scholar Program, Sean then had the opportunity to…

Although he took summer courses in the east from the graduate faculty at Columbia University, Ryan Stewart from Martin High School in Arlington, Texas, went west to study economics and…

Kara Hamilton has done solitary camping, mountain-climbing, poetry writing, and has traveled to a diversity of countries from the former British Guyana and Nicaragua to Italy and France. She approaches…

Nneka Williams is nothing if not versatile. She was captain of her judo team and ran track at the Nightingale-Bamford School in New York City, sang in the Choral Ensemble…

Gerald (Jay) Williams graduated from City Honors School in Buffalo, NY with International Baccalaureate and scientific research diplomas.During the fall of his first year at Harvard, Jay happened upon the…

Amanda Alexander is a Soros Justice Fellow and attorney in University of Michigan's Child Advocacy Law Clinic. She directs the Prison & Family Justice Project, which serves families divided by…

Samuel "Mike" Anderson pursued a rigorous course of study at Horizon High School, taking mostly AP and honors level courses. A National Merit Commended Student, he earned top scores on…

Born in London to Nigerian parents of Yoruba heritage, Adefolarin ‘Kolade' Apata was named in the hope that he would bring good health and fortune to his family. He has…

TJ graduated with honors from Stanford University in 2004 with a degree in Human Thought, a self-designed major that included coursework in philosophy, neurophysiology, and psychology. He was one of…