UNCF Washington Launches New Annual Campaign with Support of Celebrity Ambassadors

WASHINGTON - April 17, 2015 - PRLog -- (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) Washington Area Office recently announced celebrities who will serve as UNCF Ambassadors to educate the public about the fact that UNCF is still the nation’s most effective provider of minority scholarship assistance including:  Joe Clair, host of WPGC’s Joe Clair Morning Show; recording artist Traci Braxton and star of WE tv’s Braxton Family Values; and NFL wide receiver for the Chicago Bears Joshua Morgan. They will attend UNCF events throughout the Annual Campaign and will use their platforms as celebrities and media personalities to bring more attention to UNCF.  Recently they attended the UNCF Annual Campaign kick-off reception held in a Verizon Center suite and hosted by Monumental Sports & Entertainment.

The UNCF Annual Campaign began April 1 and will run through March 31, 2016, and will include special events, programs and initiatives to raise funds from local corporations, businesses, foundations and a range of community based organizations.

“We are very excited to have these popular and well known personalities involved with the UNCF Washington office to amplify our messages and help us get the word out to more students and families about how UNCF can help them pay for college” said Meta Williams, UNCF Regional Development Director.  “We want to be more proactive about making sure that people are aware of today’s UNCF and the more than 400 scholarships that are available to help students pay for college and encourage more students from this area to apply.”

Some of the major elements of the campaign will include the: UNCF Workplace Giving which allows government employee to make contributions the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC), United Way and other workplace initiatives; Metro Washington Faith & Education Initiative which raises funds through engagement with and contributions from local churches; and signature special events such as the Mayor’s Masked Ball and Annual Martin Luther King Day Breakfast.

Joshua Morgan has served as a UNCF Ambassador since 2013 and is proud to continue his close affiliation with UNCF.  “I remember what it was like as a kid growing up in DC and having dreams about going to college.  It is only because of the support from my family and community that I was able to stay on the right path and achieve my dream of attending college and playing in the NFL” says Morgan.  “Being able to give that same hope and encouragement to other young people is very important to me.”

During the 2013-2014 academic year, UNCF provided 320 Washington area students with more than $1.5 million in scholarship support. Many students who receive UNCF scholarships come from low income working families and are still the first to attend college and have an average unmet financial need of $7,323. For every scholarship that UNCF is able to award, they have to turn down nine students.

“The contributions of the United Negro College Fund have positively changed the lives of so many young people in the District and across the country,” said Traci Braxton, star of WE tv’s Braxton Family Values.  “My family has always been connected to HBCUs and my mother, my sister Toni and I attended Bowie State University” said Braxton.  “I am honored to serve as an ambassador for the UNCF Washington office and help to make sure that families and students all over the Washington Metropolitan Area are aware of the great scholarship programs and other support that UNCF continues to provide to help students get to and through college”.

Research shows that historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), like those that belong to UNCF, outperform non-HBCUs at enrolling and graduating students from low-income backgrounds who have been shortchanged by their pre-college education. UNCF scholarships UNCF scholars have a 70% graduation rate, which is almost double the 38% six-year national graduation rate for African American students and higher than the 57% graduation rate for all students.

“As a proud graduate of Morgan State University, I am extremely honored to be working with UNCF Washington as an ambassador and I am committed to do all that I can to bring more attention to the work of this great organization” said Clair.  “UNCF provides more minority scholarship support than anybody outside of the federal government and our young people in this area definitely need the support and encouragement that we can provide. The investment UNCF is making in creating better futures for young people will pay dividends for all of us when they become the next generation of leaders that the Washington Metropolitan Area – and the country – need in the future.”

About UNCF

UNCF's mission is to build a robust and nationally-recognized pipeline of under-represented students who, because of UNCF support, become highly-qualified college graduates; and to ensure that our network of 38 member historically black colleges and universities is a respected model of best practice in moving students to and through college. UNCF administers more than 400 programs, including scholarship, internship and fellowship, mentoring, summer enrichment and curriculum and faculty development programs. UNCF envisions a nation where all Americans have equal access to a college education that prepares them for rich intellectual lives, competitive and fulfilling careers, engaged citizenship and service to our nation.