TRIO Student Support Services End of Year Ceremony

Students and staff from the TRIO Student Support Services (TRIO SSS) and Student Support Services STEM (TRIO SSS-STEM) celebrated another successful school year during their annual End of Year and Senior Recognition Program on Saturday April 29 in the Washington Sankofa Room in Witherspoon Student Center. The program serves as an opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of our TRIO graduates and our underclass students, as well as to celebrate the end of another school year.

This year’s program featured reflections from graduating seniors, Vinod Mahato (PCOM) and Morgan Travis (CALS), as well as NC State TRIO Alumnus, Jamal Moss ’15 (CALS). In a speech to her peers, Morgan Travis ’17 described her experience in detail: “For a long time, I struggled with the label of first generation student. At times. I felt pride, but other times I could feel the deck being stacked against me. Getting into college was only the first step of a very long road…if I could say anything to any other student in this room, I would say the door is open. Get involved with TRIO. Get to know us.” Continuing to reflect back, Morgan stated “I will never forget some of the most meaningful and life changing conversations I have had with TRIO students whether it be on graduate school visits, leadership retreats, or kayaking down a river. Life can be tough, but you’ve got a family in us. So when people tell me how lucky I am that financial aid pays for everything, I smile and say well let me tell you about TRIO.”

Joined by Dr. Mike Mullen and TRIO Executive Director Marsha Pharr, each TRIO graduate received an official TRIO graduation cord and certificate of completion. In total, forty-four TRIO Scholars will graduate in the 2016-17 academic year and will graduate with degrees in Education, Textile Engineering, Nutrition, Horticulture and a host of others. Many graduates will enter directly into the workforce in their field, while others will enroll in graduate school programs, including the University of South Florida, the University of Virginia, North Carolina A&T State University, John Hopkins and, of course, NC State University. TRIO Scholars were also recognized for their impact on the program, their peers, and the university.

The TRIO Award Recipients include:

Scholar of Distinction

Vinod Mahato

TRIO Senior Achiever

Manaka Green

Ayanis Lindo

Morgan Travis

Dominick Vaccaro

TRIO Rising Achiever

Odiee Anazleh

Jessica Carter

Samanuel Martin

Wade Moore

Outstanding Second Year Scholar

Jasmin Heikal

Dorcas Mabiala

Aalanah Valentine

Outstanding First Year Scholar

Majesty Allah

Daniel Bun

Miguel Ortiz-Cruz

Shivani Surati

Peer Mentor of the Year

Brooke Blosser

Alexa Zolman

Picart Foundations in Leadership Award

Chanelle McArthur

Tutors of Distinction

Anta Diouf

Annie Neese

Jimmy Tabet

TRIO Legacy Award

Shaquilla Hamlett

Trailblazer Award Winners

Pablo Campos

Allison Mostecak

GRIT Award

Connie Gatlin

Daniel Kirl

Asia Serrano

TRIO SSS Champion Award (Faculty or Staff Recognition)

Marsha Pharr

About TRIO

TRIO Programs are Federal outreach and student programs designed to serve and assist low income individuals, first-generation college students, and individuals with disabilities to progress through the academic pipeline from middle school to post baccalaureate degrees. Of these eight programs, NC State University host four programs, including the two premier TRIO pre-college programs, Talent Search (1991) and Upward Bound (1978 and 2012), and both the Student Support Services (2010) and Student Support Services STEM (2015) programs. The North Carolina State University TRIO Student Support Services Program (SSS) and Student Support Services STEM (SSS-STEM) Program strives to encourage and enhance educational opportunities for undergraduate students by providing academic and personal support to enhance academic skills, increase retention and graduation rates, and as appropriate, facilitate entrance into graduate and professional programs. Program Alumni reside in all corners of the country working in business, industry, government, medicine, law, education, communications, sales, finance, politics, transportation, publishing, law enforcement, computer science and technology, engineering and accounting.