Hey Y’all:

Here is another installment of Everyday Superstar. Today I’d like to highlight The United Negro College Fund.

We all know that motto “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste” and are familiar with the “Lou Rawls Parade of Stars” telethon to benefit the UNCF. Over the past few years the major event is the televised An Evening of Stars®, which recently aired on BET/Centric and honored Lionel Richie.

Here is a little bit about The United Negro College Fund

The UNCF enables more then 60,000 students to close the educational
gap between African Americans and the majority population by providing operating
funds for its 39 member colleges, administering 400 scholarship and internship
programs, serving as a national advocate for the importance minority higher
education by representing the public policy interests of its students and member
colleges, and by using print and electronic media to carry out the mission
implicit in its motto.

The UNCF symbol resembles a torch. Traditionally, torches have been used to
represent knowledge and enlightenment. UNCF uses a flame and torch base to
represent how the organization lights the way for advanced learning and
leadership. The flame represents the light of knowledge that all UNCF students
seek.

The UNCF was incorporated on April 25, 1944 by Frederick D. Patterson (then
president of what is now Tuskegee University), Mary McLeod Bethune, and others.
In 2005, the UNCF supported approximately 65,000 students at over 900 colleges
and universities with approximately $113 million in grants and scholarships.
About 60% of these students are the first in their families to attend college,
and 62% have annual family incomes of less than $25,000. UNCF also administers
over 450 named scholarships.

I celebrate the UNCF because “A mind is a terrible thing to waste” and through this organization many African American young men and women are using their gift of education to better their communities and the world!

Please check out the BlackPlanet page that UNCF is sponsoring to promote it’s latest scholarship contest with Verizon. Not in need of a scholarship? Well you can upload your spoken word on the UNCF motto here and enter a contest to win $1,000.

Don’t forget to send me your Everyday Superstar.

Until next time…

MUAH!