31 New Orleans Students Awarded Four-Year, Full-Tuition Scholarships

This January, Posse New Orleans welcomed more than 170 guests at its fourth annual Awards Ceremony in the Stage Door Canteen at the National World War II Museum. Thirty-one new Scholars were awarded over $5 million in four-year, full-tuition merit-based leadership scholarships to Bard College, Grinnell College and Tulane University. Posse New Orleans was honored to be joined by corporate and academic officials, including Tulane University President Michael Fitts.

“Recognizing these Scholars’ accomplishments and demonstrated leadership is the first step in their amazing journey together as agents of change at Bard, Grinnell and Tulane,” says Posse New Orleans Director Monica Sylvain. “We thank our college and university partners for the substantial investment they make in their success.”

These 31 incredible Scholars were chosen from a nomination pool of nearly 600 students from the Greater New Orleans region and hail from 17 high schools. The newest Bard and Tulane Scholars will join nearly 60 Scholars already on campus in the fall. This is the first year that Posse New Orleans Scholars will be on campus at Grinnell College, joining Scholars from Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

"As one person I felt limited at times, but as a member of my Posse limitations do not seem to exist,” says new Bard College Scholar Zien Hodge. “The idea of greater gains for all through the collective use of various talents is something I now experience first-hand. Posse has given me the foundation, tools and encouragement to not only reach my goals, but the will to bring the same idea of community through college and after."

At the end of January, the 31 newest Posse Scholars began eight months of Pre-Collegiate Training workshops with their Posses, preparing them to support each other and succeed on campus.

Bard College
Matthew Agosto
Saul Amezcua
Marketa Fagan
Jaleel Green
Zien Hodge
Jazlyn Johnson
Ashley Jones
Azlan Maqbool
Payton Smith
Jada Woods

Grinnell College
Bailey Bagneris
J’remi Barnes
Gabrielle Deroche
Brianisha Frith
Damien Johnson
Iwan Leggins
Jamal Preston
Rayyon Robinson
Tyrea’l Samuel
Edward Scott
Hassan Thompson

Tulane University
Andrea Baudy
Younes Boulares
Keristen Edwards
Yush Kukreja
Hanh Luu
Sydney Monix
Cianjanae Purvis
Justin Sandoval
Bilal Sarmini
Ty-ron Wright