CDW Announces Scholarship Opportunities Through New Legacy Excellence Program

The CDW Legacy Excellence Program, which CDW announced Monday, will include a scholarship program and a fellowship opportunity for students, and technology investments for four premier historically Black colleges and universities: Alabama A&M University, Florida A&M University, North Carolina A&T State University and Southern University and A&M College. The new partnership between these HBCUs and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) aims to “create a pathway towards leadership for diverse students,” according to the press release.

The CDW LEP, along with investment and participation from CDW partners such as Lenovo, will provide support in four areas:

• A scholarship program for full-time students attending any publicly funded HBCU
• A fellowship opportunity for students attending the four participating HBCUs
• Technology investments in the form of infrastructure and programmatic solutions for the participating HBCUs
• The formation of a dedicated team at CDW to support the unique needs of HBCUs

Sixteen students, four from each of the participating HBCUs, will receive financial assistance as part of the CDW LEP’s fellowship component. Support will include a full-tuition scholarship; a housing and textbook stipend; paid 10-week summer internships in Chicago — including housing and transportation — prior to the student’s junior and senior years; leadership development courses; and an opportunity to interview for full-time employment with CDW upon completion of the program.

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“The digital divide is very real, and the need for our students to have access to technology and technical skills is as important as ever,” says James H. Ammons Jr., executive vice president of the Southern University System and chancellor of Southern University at New Orleans. “The CDW Legacy Excellence Program represents an exciting opportunity for putting the concepts of diversity, equity, inclusion and digital equity into action, while helping our students excel.”

TMCF will assist with fellowship selection and evaluation, and scholarship management. Students who want to apply for the program or learn more about program requirements can do so here. Fellowship applications will be accepted through March 14, 2022. Applications for the scholarship program — which will grant $5,000 scholarships and provide devices, among other benefits, to an additional 20 students — will be accepted beginning in late February.