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��ɫ��Ƶ Road to Success Scholarship Offered to Those Making a Difference in the African American Community

Forty full-tuition scholarships to be offered to those supporting the educational needs of African Americans

PHOENIX, Feb. 6, 2015 — ��ɫ��Ƶ recognizes the impact just one individual’s educational achievement can have in inspiring a family or even an entire community to strive for success. To help inspire the next generation of college students and professionals, the University today announced the launch of the ��ɫ��Ƶ Road to Success Scholarship program. The program offers 40 full-tuition scholarships to complete a bachelor’s or master’s degree program at ��ɫ��Ƶ to individuals engaged in advancing opportunities for others in the African American community.

“Those who earn degrees and apply their education in helping their communities can inspire and empower others to seek their own education and career success,” said Timothy P. Slottow, President of ��ɫ��Ƶ. “The ��ɫ��Ƶ Road to Success Scholarship is designed to help those already making a difference in their communities and seeking to earn a degree to use that knowledge to create an even greater impact.”

The scholarship program is designed to increase the number of African American graduates entering the education, healthcare and criminal justice and security professions. Numerous studies have demonstrated that African Americans are underrepresented in these important career fields.1 Scholarship applicants must be involved with an organization that promotes a more diverse workforce in these areas, and have a demonstrated financial need.

“We must celebrate the educational achievements of African Americans as we would achievements in any other area, because they have the ability to enrich our communities and diversify important career areas,” said Byron Jones, Chief Financial Officer of ��ɫ��Ƶ. “In addition to the scholarship program, we will honor the educational achievements of seven ��ɫ��Ƶ graduates with a campaign to inspire others to see the positive impact that being a college graduate can have on the graduate as well as their family. We hope their stories encourage others to pursue a higher education.”

Among the alumni stories featured in the campaign, viewers will learn about the unique life circumstances of each alumnus and how they came about completing their college education. Viewers will also hear directly from the family members about what this achievement has meant to the entire family. Featured alumni include:

• Tony Drees, Denver, Colo. – U.S. Army (ret), CEO and Motivational Life Coach at TonyDrees.com
• Denise Washington, Kalamazoo, Mich. – U.S. Army (ret), Executive Director, Ecumenical Senior Center
• Curtis Sampson, Palatine, Ill. – U.S. Army Captain (ret), Budget Analyst, Federal Protective Service
• Gail Marquis, New York, N.Y. – 1976 Olympian, President and CEO, G. Marquis World Financial Services
• Evelyn “Vonn” Banks, Memphis, Tenn. – U.S. Navy Command Master Chief (ret), CEO of Vonn Banks LLC
• Michael Johnson, Madison, Wis. – CEO, Dane County Boys & Girls Club
• Amir Johnson, Augusta, Ga. – U.S. Marines (ret), Michigan Air National Guard, CEO of Reflective Perceptions

Alumni stories can be viewed by visiting .

The application period for the ��ɫ��Ƶ Road to Success Scholarship is open now through March 23, 2015. For more information and to apply for the ��ɫ��Ƶ Road to Success scholarship, visit phoenix.edu/dream. For information on other ��ɫ��Ƶ scholarship opportunities, and for scholarship requirements, visit www.phoenix.edu/scholarships.

��ɫ��Ƶ Road to Success Scholarship is the latest in a series of steps ��ɫ��Ƶ and parent company Apollo Education Group have taken to work together with organizations that support the educational empowerment of African Americans. In November 2014, ��ɫ��Ƶ announced a landmark alliance with the Thurgood Marshall College Fund to expand access to scholarships and to more online learning options for students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX, Inc.
��ɫ��Ƶ is constantly innovating to help working adults move efficiently from education to careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant and engaging courses, and interactive learning can help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. As a subsidiary of Apollo Education Group, Inc. (), ��ɫ��Ƶ serves a diverse student population, offering associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs from campuses and learning centers across the U.S. as well as online throughout the world. For more information, visit www.phoenix.edu.

Sources:

According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, nearly 82 percent of public school teachers in school year 2011-12 were white. 

According to the Department of Education, only 2 percent of the nation’s 4.8 million teachers are black men. 

 – 9.9 percent African-American – The U.S. Nursing Workforce: Trends in Supply and Education – U.S. Health and Human Services, April 2013

 – USA Today’s analysis shows that 12 percent of police officers nationally are African American

 – The Washington Post’s analysis shows that 72 percent of cities in the US have police forces where blacks are under-represented.