The Institute's primary goal is to inspire and equip the nation's best and brightest African American men to use their extraordinary talents to serve others.
From hundreds of applications, the Institute selects some of the nation’s best and brightest African American male college students to participate in its Washington Program. It includes:
Harvard University
Sterling Bland majors in Sociology and Mathematical Sciences at Harvard University. He has worked as a consultant on curriculum diversification for his hometown school district. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Ronald Reagan Leadership Award, Rotary Youth Leadership Award, and United Negro College Fund STEM Award. Sterling is considering a career that combines his interests in law and ministry. His hometown is Colorado Springs, Colorado.
New York University
Jeremiah Bonnet majors in Sociology with minors in Africana Studies, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Studies and Chemistry at New York University. His goal is to become a pediatric neurosurgeon. He has shadowed doctors at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, served as a pediatric neurosurgeon emergency room volunteer at Boston Medical Center, and participated in a summer health professions education program at Howard University. At NYU, he is a Dean’s Honors Scholar, Presidential Honors Scholar and participates in the NYU Academic Excellence Program. His hometown is Sharon, Massachusetts.
New York University
Hamilton Brooks is a History major at New York University. He has also studied Art and Political Science at NYU Madrid. He has interned at the Carnegie Council on Ethics, Harvard Library, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, NAACP, and the Democracy Initiative. He currently serves as the Field Director of GenVote, where he led voter engagement efforts at NYU. Before NYU, he served as Student Body President at the Potomac School. His hometown is Woodbridge, Virginia.
College of William & Mary
Alton Coston is a Public Policy and Africana Studies major at the College of William & Mary, where he participates in the college’s undergraduate research program. He has interned for the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia and as an investment research analyst for Washington Analysis, assessing investment risk arising from legislative or regulatory developments. Alton is a William & Mary Scholar and a Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholar. He plans to attend law school after graduation. His hometown is Richmond, Virginia.
University of Virginia
Garvey Goulbourne is a Foreign Affairs and Global Development Studies major at the University of Virginia. He has interned with the Nevada Policy Research Institute and currently serves as a Research Assistant in the UVA Global Development Studies Department. He is president of his university’s United Nations Association chapter and participates in the Congressional Youth Council. After graduation, Garvey intends to work in foreign affairs and one day become an ambassador. His hometown is Roswell, Georgia.
New York University
Ron Hall studies Politics and Economics at New York University. He is a Presidential Honors Scholar and was elected to serve as first-year and sophomore class president. He is also a peer mentor in NYU’s Academic Achievement Program. Ron is also a member of the Track and Field team. He intends to attend law school and pursue a career in law. His hometown is Grand Prairie, Texas.
Indiana University
Zachary Harper is an Accounting major at Indiana University. He is a student in the Kelley Business School, where he is a Prebys Scholar. He has also been admitted into the Hutton Honors College. He serves on the Dean’s Undergraduate Student Advisory Committee. He is also gaining experience in finance as an Equity Research Analyst at BLK Capital Management, a Black-owned institution whose managers are African American college students. His hometown is Detroit, Michigan.
Howard University
Kareem Isaac is a sophomore at Howard University. He is majoring in Psychology and hopes to use the knowledge he gains there in the field of Advertising. He has volunteered extensively with the National Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. His hometown is Silver Spring, Maryland.
University of Chicago
Kellin McGowan majors in Economics at the University of Chicago. He was the first African American valedictorian at Saint Thomas High School in Houston, Texas. He achieved that distinction while participating in speech and debate and competing on the school’s track and field team. He currently serves on the board of directors of University of Chicago Democrats. After graduation, Kellin intends to attend law school and become an immigration attorney.
University of North Carolina
Maxwell Morant is a Kenan Scholar in the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has served in the Undergraduate Senate and was named Mr. Freshman by the Black Student Movement. He is also a Resident Advisor for Carolina Housing. After graduation, Max intends to pursue a career in investment banking. His hometown is Durham, North Carolina.
Yale University
James Mullins majors in Ethics, Politics, and Economics at Yale University and is active with the Yale Black Men’s Union. Off campus, he has been involved with The Carolyn Foundation. After graduation, James intends to pursue a career in nonprofit administration. His hometown is Hersey, Pennsylvania.
Yale University
Jonathan Oates is a Political Science major at Yale University. He is a Senator on the Yale College Council and also serves as a Residential College Team Director. Jonathan has also served as the Director of Social Media with the Bethel AME Church and interned with a nonpartisan think tank, ThinkTennesse. After graduation and law school, Jonathan intends to work at the intersection of law and public policy. His hometown is Knoxville, Tennessee.
York College
Shaquille Profitt majors in English and is a Pre-Law minor at York College of the City University of New York, where he is a Student Ambassador and a Thurgood Marshall College Fund Scholar. He has also interned with Congressman Gregory Meeks and New York State Assemblyman David Weprin. He plans to attend law school and aspires to become a United States Attorney and later a federal judge. His hometown is Coram, New York.
University of North Carolina
Jovan Sheshbaradaran majors in Business Administration and Political Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he is an Honors Carolina Scholar. He has served as a marketing intern for the Schiele Museum of Natural History and a youth ministry Intern with the First Wesleyan Church in Gastonia, North Carolina. After graduation, Jovan hopes to work in marketing. His hometown is Belmont, North Carolina.
Colgate University
Chandler Washington majors in Economics and Political Science at Colgate University. He will be the Institute’s first scholar from Colgate. He is a Benton Scholar and has been elected to serve as a Senator in the university’s Student Government Association. Chandler is interested in pursuing a career in either law or finance. His hometown is Pasadena, California.
The Institute selects scholars from all over the United States. They have a wide variety of interests and represent small liberal arts colleges, large universities, Ivy League institutions, and historically Black colleges and universities. Our alumni have been accepted to all of the nation’s top law schools and many of the nation’s leading graduate programs. Today, they are teachers, ordained ministers, accountants, entrepreneurs, and rising stars at Fortune 500 companies. All of them are engaged in public and community service.
Bill Keyes hitchhiked from North Carolina to Washington, DC to pursue a dream of working in public policy. He realized that dream by working in a staff position at the Joint Economic Committee of the United States Congress and as a White House Senior Policy Advisor.
Colin Ganges is a New Jersey native and graduate of Guilford College (’19) where he majored in Philosophy. During his junior year, he studied at the University of Oxford and St. Clare’s in Oxford, England. As a member of the Honors Program, he wrote a senior thesis entitled “Justifying Egalitarian Redistribution within Nozick’s Minimal State”.