2007 Siemens Teacher Scholarships Awarded

ISELIN, N.J., Jan. 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Siemens Foundation today announced the winners of the 2007 Siemens Teacher Scholarships, a collaboration between the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF), the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and the Siemens Foundation. The program celebrates minority students who plan to pursue teaching careers in science and math. To date, nearly 100 students have received scholarship awards.

“Now in its second year, the Siemens Foundation’s partnership with the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and the United Negro College Fund continues to be an important investment in America’s future,” said Jeniffer Harper-Taylor, Vice President of the Siemens Foundation and graduate of Southern University in Baton Rouge, La, one of the country’s 85 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). “By providing necessary resources to students in need, we can broaden our pool of qualified math and science teachers who will be on the front lines encouraging future innovators.”

“Teachers are often quite influential in the lives of their students and having minorities in leadership positions makes a tremendous difference. Since HBCUs have long been a training ground for new leaders in both education and science, the Siemens’ grant not only helps continue this tradition, but also addresses a need for more qualified math and science teachers,” said Dwayne Ashley, CEO and President, Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

The Siemens Foundation is providing $1 million in scholarships over five years to undergraduate and graduate students through the Siemens Teacher Scholarships. The funds are administered by the TMCF and UNCF, with each organization receiving $500,000 to be awarded to students accepted to any one of America’s 85 Historically Black Colleges and Universities that are members of the two organizations. Student recipients are selected by the two organizations. This year, forty-nine students will receive an average scholarship of $2,000 to help supplement his or her higher education costs toward a teaching degree in math and science.

As bachelor degrees awarded in science, technology, engineering and math decline, HBCUs play a vital role in meeting America’s need to increase and diversify science professionals. A 2005 report by the Southern Education Foundation found that black colleges in the South are producing close to one- fourth of the entire nation’s African-American college graduates in the sciences.

“This scholarship will help me to reach my goal of teaching, which will not only bring minority representation to the field of math and science, but also inspire others to follow in my footsteps,” said 2007 Siemens Teacher Scholarship recipient Leigha Ann Morris, a freshman at Saint Augustine’s College.

   A complete list of the 2007 Siemens Teacher Scholarships winners follows:    2007 UNCF Siemens Teacher Scholarships    – Marteng Adolphe, Florida Memorial University (Biology)    – Deidre Alleyne, Bennett College (Elementary Education)    – Brandon Baxter, Benedict College (Mathematics Education)    – Crystal Benton, Tuskegee University (Elementary Education)    – Shanay Benton, Tuskegee University (Elementary Education)    – Nickalaya Chapman, Tougaloo College (Education)    – Tania Coleman, Shaw University (Mathematics Education)    – John Coles, Virginia Union University (Mathematics Education)    – Angela Collins, Wiley College (Education)    – LaKeshia Cooper, Xavier University (Mathematics Education)    – Sandra Curtis, Johnson C. Smith University (Mathematics Education)    – Kenneth Dawkins Jr., Benedict College (Mathematics Education)    – Gregory Deas, Livingstone College (Elementary Education)    – Latonya Dunham, Clark Atlanta University (Education)    – Jonathan Edwards, Morehouse College (Biology)    – Krystial Elam, Wiley College (Biology)    – April Gary, Claflin University (Mathematics Education)    – Marcus Graham, Johnson C. Smith University (Mathematics)    – Hollie Henry, Bethune-Cookman College (Elementary Education)    – Donica Ivy, Stillman College (Biology)    – Teirra Jordan, Clark Atlanta University (Education)    – Navid Khurshid, Claflin University (Mathematics)    – Makeda Lane, Oakwood College (Education)    – Annie Leathers, Shaw University (Elementary Education)    – Omari Mack, Claflin University (Mathematics)    – Jennifer Mervin, Bennett College (Elementary Education)    – Leigha Morris, St. Augustine College (Elementary Education)    – Nicole Morris, Philander Smith College (Chemistry)    – Brian Nelson, Johnson C. Smith University (Mathematics Education)    – Jason Perry, Florida Memorial University (Biology Education)    – Vonda Pettigrew, Oakwood College (Education)    – Ivenetta Smith, Bennett College (Mathematics)    – Breana Turner, Clark Atlanta University (Early Childhood Education)    2007 TMCF Siemens Teacher Scholarships    – Shanay Benton, Tuskegee University (Elementary Education)    – William Brown, Chicago State University (Secondary Education and      Mathematics)    – Janette Carrington, Howard University (Biology)    – Jeremy Coleman, Jackson State University (Biology)    – Reginald Collier, Texas Southern University (Mathematics)    – Sherie Gilford, Albany State University (Education)    – Katessa Hammonds, Tuskegee University (Education)    – Carl Harvin, Coppin State University (Secondary Education and      Mathematics)    – Lorraine Howard, Mississippi Valley State University (Education)    – Courtney Johnson, North Carolina A&T State University (Biology)    – Michelle Josey, North Carolina Central University (Education)    – Tiffany McGriff, University of Maryland Eastern Shore (Biology)    – Mark Moxley, Lincoln University Pennsylvania (Master’s of Education and      Mathematics)    – Jennifer Nash, Central State University (Mathematics)    – Bryan Robertson, Prairie View A&M University (Education)    – Tiara Turner, University of Maryland Eastern Shore (Mathematics)    The Siemens Foundation  

Established in 1998, the Siemens Foundation provides nearly $2 million in college scholarships and awards each year for talented high school students in the United States. Based in Iselin, New Jersey, the Foundation’s signature programs — the Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology, the Siemens Awards for Advanced Placement, and the Siemens Teacher Scholarships — recognize exceptional achievement in science, math and technology. By supporting outstanding students today, and recognizing the teachers and schools that inspire their excellence, the Foundation helps nurture tomorrow’s scientists and engineers. The Foundation’s mission is based on the culture of innovation, research and educational support that is the hallmark of Siemens’ U.S. operating companies and its parent company, Siemens AG. For more information, visit http://www.siemens-foundation.org/.

Siemens Foundation

CONTACT: Kim Newman of Dentsu Communications, Inc., +1-212-660-6799, orknewman@dcinyc.com; or Michael McCauley of Siemens Foundation,+1-732-906-3855, or michael.mccauley@siemens.com

Web site: http://www.siemens-foundation.org/