Bad Weather Didn’t Dampen President’s Tour

By Hazel Scott

Inclement weather didn’t dampen that Ol’ Bama State Spirit for hundreds of high school students on Wednesday (March 4) and Thursday (March 5).

A throng of enthusiastic students, high school bands and cheerleading squads met President Quinton T. Ross Jr. and his road team of students, faculty, staff, administrators and recruitment advisers as they journeyed to Selma, Hayneville and Mobile.   

“They rolled out the black and gold carpet for us,” Ross said.

The tour is a way to recruit some of the best and brightest students and to bring a piece of The Alabama State University to their school campus.

“It gives prospective students and their communities a chance to take a closer look at Alabama State University and to award some hefty college scholarships to deserving students,” Ross said.

At each stop, President Ross inspired ASU pride and made a great case for why students should consider ASU.

“Students can get anywhere they want from ASU,” Ross said. “We are able to produce exceptional graduates because great things happen every day at ASU. From research to robotics and from theatre arts to physical therapy, The Alabama State University has an outstanding array of high-demand and traditional academic programs to offer our students.”

One key part of the bus tour is the signing of an important Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a community college. Today (March 5), President Ross and the President of Coastal Community College, Dr. Craig Pouncey, will execute a MOU in Mobile in order to provide a pathway for students who have achieved their two-year associate degree to enroll at ASU to attain their bachelor’s degree.  

High School Visits

Selma High School students visit ASU's College Fair.  (Photos by ASU Photographer David Campbell)

The “Moving ASU Forward with Hornet Pride!” tour (Feb. 5 and Feb. 24-March 7) made its way on Wednesday to Selma High School in Selma and Central High School in Hayneville. Today (March 5), the tour will make a stop at Mobile’s Leflore High School and tomorrow it will visit Montgomery’s Park Crossing and Sidney Lanier High Schools.   

The students were able to attend ASU’s College Fair and have a one-on-one conversation with a University representative.  

ASU also carried out its hallmark of awarding scholarships, some right on the spot.

Nine surprise scholarships were awarded in Lowndes County -- Selma High, 3; Dallas County High, 3; Southside High, 2; and Keith High, 1.

One surprise scholarship winner, Zamiyah White, who will major in forensic science at ASU in the fall, said the scholarship is a way to pay tribute to her mother.

“It’s a great honor for me to be following in my mother’s steps because she graduated from Alabama State University in ’06,” Zamiyah said. “Now I can have that Hornet Pride.”

At Central High School in Hayneville, there were three surprise scholarship recipients.

Senior Shara Nelson, who will major in business administration in the fall at ASU, expressed excitement when her name was called.   

“I wasn’t expecting this. My auntie graduated from ASU, so I will be the second generation attending Alabama State,” Shara said. “I’m excited to see what my future holds.”

All the school officials agreed that their students will benefit from the President’s Tour.

Superintendent of Dallas County School System, Hattie Shelton, is an ASU alumna (’82) and she remarked that if it had not been for ASU, she would not be where she is today.

“I’m ecstatic that the tour is here in my county. I graduated from ASU in ’82. I would not be here today if Alabama State didn’t give me a scholarship to attend ASU,” Shelton said. “Students don’t have to travel 200-300 miles to get a good education.  They can reach their goals and get a good education at Alabama State.”  

The guidance counselor at Central High School and an ASU alum (’05), Shamekia Seaborn, advocated for the President’s tour to come to her school.

“I wanted my students to experience what I experienced – college life, a quality education, just everything it has to offer,” Seaborn said.

Central HIgh Assistant Principal Traci Stewart agreed.

“The tour provides exposure to post-secondary opportunities at a historically black college and university.  Some of our students think their opportunities are limited because they come from a small Black Belt school system,” Stewart said. “This tour gives students a closer look at ASU and all it has to offer so students can see to find their place in the world.”

At the culmination of today’s event in Mobile, ASU will hold a reception to provide opportunities for engagement with alumni, student scholars and friends of ASU.  The reception is a way for ASU and its alums to reconnect.  

The last leg of the tour will end with a Hornet Extravaganza, which features the Black and Gold Game at the ASU Stadium on Saturday, March 7.   

​To get daily updates on the President’s tour, go to ASU Facebook page (alabamastateuniversity) or visit the University’s website at www.alasu.edu/presidentstour.

Scholarship recipients at Selma High School. in Selma, Ala.

Scholarship recipients at Central High School in Hayneville., Ala.

Scholarship recipients at Leflore High School in Mobile, Ala.