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ithings and a lot of experiences she is the president of, a So-
tthat gave me a story to tell on cial Justice Program Fellow, and
tthe other side and that I’ve expe- Student Director of Mimi’s Pan-
irienced a lot of grace and favor try. While fulfilling her duties in
;and mercy this year.” these positions, she manages to
During the times when she do work in the surrounding com-
ifelt as though she fell short, she’s munities.
;always had her friends, sisters, “I’m a Lowry Institute Change
land family in her corner cheering Agent, and through this pro-
I her on. gram I help with workshops and
"Even when I didn’t see it, implementing informationals
my friends, my sisters, my family about HIV and AIDS awareness,
:supported me and let me know promotion of HBCU’s, and I also
that it was going to happen re- teach at Brown Middle School on
jgardless,” Janna said. "My com- a weekly basis in which I work
munity kept me going when I was to implement nonviolence and
so ready to be done with every- conflict resolution curriculum
thing. They carried my burdens for those students,” King said,
for me if I couldn’t hold them up "I’m also a Sight Leader for both
■ myself.” Brown Middle School and Tus-
After working hard during kegee Global Airman Academy,
her time at Spelman as Ms. Spel- and through this all the student
man, being a Lead Chapel Assis- change agents or student teach-
tant at Sister’s Chapel, and being ers that are at these two schools,
involved in the Spelman College I’m the supervisor of them all
Social Justice Program, Perry has so I not only help to create and
been able to find out what her ca- implement the curriculum, but I
reer aspirations are. also am the point leader for the
“I want to go to law school, teachers in these schools.”
I don’t necessarily want to prac- Through the work Melanie’s done
tice law, but I do want to have a with the Blue Institute and Sta-
judicial and legal background,” cey Abrams, she has served as
Perry said. “I’m very interested in voice for the people and encour-
policy that impacts children that aged others to be involved,
have been impacted by poverty in “There’s a large paucity of peo-
the Black community, definitely pie of color within political cam-
family structures and program- paigns they’re usually white men
ming for children." working for white men who are
those elected officials, so we’re
Coming from a predominantly trying to change the demographic
white institution in NJ, Melanie of what people on political cam-
King has viewed Spelman as “the paign staffs look like in order to
perfect change” that she needed better implement these changes
to make in her life that impacted within communities of color be-
her in more ways than one. Since cause if you have white staff and
attending the institution, King a white elected official working
has found that she was opened to in Black or Brown communities
a plethora of experiences. there’s nothings that’s going to
"I experienced sisterhood, a lot of change there,” Melanie said,
firsts, a lot of self-growth, and I After graduation, King plans to
was able to use my talents and attend Brown University fully
my skills to really make an im- funded to pursue at Master’s in
pact on the community within Public Affairs and a PhD in Af-
schools and the public education ricana Studies to work in public
system,” Melanie said. “Spel- policy and also be a researcher
man was the perfect place for me and professor,
in terms of being a woman who "Storytelling in the Black corn-
wanted to change the world in the munity is something special and
future.” it helps us express our ideas,
King has been working to make express our pains, and whatever
change by being involved in or- we’re going through in a variety
ganizations such as the Spelman of different mediums," Mela-
College Honors Program which nie said. “I realized the power
of words - more specifically the ing truth to that and providing
power of teaching whether that in people with advice and a space
the form of words, mathematics, to really be comfortable with their
or linguistics or anything of that pursuit of business and their pur-
nature - really, really can make suit of that as a career regardless
an influential change in the pow- of what their major is.
er dynamic between students I chose a major that I wasn’t go-
who may come from lower income ing to hate, but that doesn’t mean
communities or who may just not I couldn’t do what I wanted to do
have that passion for learning, in my career. I always knew as a
Children really are our future, and career and as an adult regardless
I feel that the education system of what my degree was I was go-
right now is kind of failing us, ing to be a business woman and I
but I feel as though us as college was going to be an entrepreneur.”
students do have the potential to After graduation, Myers will enter
use what resources we have and to world of Wall Street. Studying
the little bit of resources we have Chemistry has allowed her the op-
as college students to go back portunity to "analyze data and re-
to these communities and teach port it in a way that makes sense
students what they need order to to other people.” She hopes that
succeed.” by the time that she leaves that
she is prepared to work for Wall
Nina Myers is a Chemistry major Street and inspired others to be
that took an unconventional route willing to go against the grain
to reach her goal and receive the and take the road less traveled to
job that she’s worked diligently reach their goals,
for. "As a Black woman who trying to
After working hard for three years go into finance and Wall Street
at Spelman, she realized that her which is a very White-male-dom-
last year would be the year where inated field, I spent a decent
everything came into fruition and amount of time with people who
accomplished all that she want- went to Morehouse because those
ed to accomplish. She found out were the people who were in the
in order to achieve her goals she same programs as me,” Nina
would have to find balance, and said. “We were going to the same
she decided there was one way to conferences or talking about the
do it. same things that I wanted to talk
“I decided to be really, really about, and I really wanted to be
good at the things that I want to able to tap into that community
be good at,” Myers said. “Since at Spelman and to see all the
I was really little school was the opportunities that I was able to
thing that I was good at instinc- get just from walking across the
tively and coming here I did not street, I was able to start launch-
stop doing that.” ing my career from freshman
Although she chose to major in year. I ended being the guinea
Chemistry, Nina didn’t lose sight pig for a lot of things and being
of reaching her goal of entering able to share that knowledge and
the world of finance despite re- having people contact me out of
ceiving pushback. nowhere.
“My career was really important I didn’t realize what I was doing
to me because I’m a Chemistry in terms of trying to follow my
major, but I’m going into finance own path was impacting people.”
after graduation,” Nina said.
“Those things are so separate,
and I’ve had to battle with the
institution about what it means
to be a woman in business and a
woman in finance and really try
ing to get people to embrace that
in themselves because we don’t
really have a place on this cam
pus for that. For me, that’s been
really important - always speak-
THE YEAR OF THE UNDERDOG
WOMAN OF THE YEAR