First Cohort of Morgan State ASCEND Scholars Celebrates Successfully Completing Program

The first cohort of ASCEND Scholars successfully completed their two-year program and were celebrated by their peers, family, and Morgan State University staff and faculty on Thursday evening, May 11, 2017. The Scholars showcased the findings from the research projects they initiated during the 2015 Summer Research Institute (SRI). There were a total of six research teams:

• Identifying Sources of Stress Among First Generation Traditional College Students in a Historically Black University
• Comparing Students’ Alcohol Consumption Rates Before and After Homecoming Week at a Historically Black College and University (HBCU)
• Students’ Perception and Behavior Towards a Smoke-Free Campus Policy in an HBCU
• Association Between Levels of Breath Acetone, Dietary Intake, and Diabetes among Morgan State University Students
• Sexual Assault Mobile Application Education Intervention on an HBCU Campus
• Association Between Family Structure, Coping Styles, Stress Levels, and Academic Performance of African-American College Students          

The Scholars have been provided with the theoretical, methodological, applied, and practical skills needed to pursue graduate education. They have been exposed to diverse research perspectives, challenged to think creatively, learned to question with vigor and passion, and are motivated and dedicated to pursuing their dreams to make a difference in their lives and the lives of others. Six Scholars graduated from the university this May.

• Ms. Jazzmyn Rodriguez will take some time off from academics and work on research with Dr. Young (educational psychologist) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, on Cultures in Technology. She is planning to apply to California State University, San Diego for a psychology graduate degree.
• Mr. Kelly Boham will be an SRI near-peer mentor. He has yet to decide on his graduate school plans, however Lehigh University has been recruiting him.
• Ms. Barbara Okowa will be an SRI near-peer mentor this summer and then go on to pursue her Masters of Social Work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
• Ms. Olufunmilayo “Funmi” Ayeni will be an SRI near-peer mentor this summer, and then will be attending Michigan State University to pursue her Ph.D. in Ecological Community Psychology.
• Ms. Jada Boyd will go to Duke University to pursue her Ph.D. in Physical Therapy.
• Ms. Aliyah Tolliver will attend the University of Maryland, College Park to pursue her master’s degree in Clinical Psychological Science.