Winston-Salem native
leaves Wake Forest
debt-free and employed
Michael Green,
raised by single
mom, overcomes
the odds
BY TODD LUCK
THE CHRONICLE
?; ... <
Michael Green, a
Winston-Salem native, is a
22-year-old 2015 Wake
Forest University graduate
with no debt and a job lined
up with Deloitte
Consulting in Washington,
DC.
The youngest of three
children. Green was raised
by a single mom. When he
was in high school, his
mother, Carol, worked two
jobs hoping to help her son
with his upcoming college
expenses, but knowing she
could never afford to pay
for a college like Wake
Forest.
Then one day, she took
a call from him saying that
he'd gotten the Joseph G.
Gordon Scholarship, a full
ride scholarship covering
all his expenses at Wake
Forest University. She was
so happy she hollered and
screamed with joy. The
Winston-Salem State
University graduate
promptly returned to hav
ing one full-time job as a
teacher's assistant at
Southwest Elementary
School.
The Gordon
Scholarship is a merit
based scholarship for
underrepresented students,
such as African-Americans
like Green. Up to seven
scholars are chosen annual
ly. Green said he always
knew he'd get in a good
university because he had
good grades; it was just a
matter of paying for it.
"My family has a very
strong tradition of higher
education, and so it was
always expected that I go to
college," he said. "That was
always part of my plan. I
always knew whatever I
wanted to do would require
a college education."
As a child in Winston
Salem, he walked to school
at KimNirjey Park
Elementary ana Paisley IB
Magnet School, where he
attended sixth through 10th
grade. At Paisley, he started
in the International
Baccalaureate program,
which he would finish at
Parkland Magnet High
School. He said the rigor
ous program helped him
prepare for college with
diverse, challenging cours
es that emphasized writing.
His exposure to college
began at an early age.
While attending Paisley, he
participated in the Duke
TIP (Talent Identification
Program) for four sum
mers. TIP lets young stu
dents who score high
enough on the SAT to par
ticipate in three-week sum
mer enrichment programs
held on college campuses.
In Green's case, he went to
Appalachian State
University and the
University of Georgia.
In his sophomore year,
his English class got library
cards to the Wake Forest
University Library. Going
there to do research was his
Photo by Todd Luck
Michael Green poses with a monument to his frater
nity, Kappa Alpha Psi.
Michael Green's family congratulates him after graduating from Wake Forest
University on May 18. They are (L-R) Gloria Green, his grandmother; Carol
Green, his mother; and Latoya Hunt, his sister.
Photo by Erin Micelle for the Winston-Salem Chronicle
first exposure to Wake
Forest.
"I just remember it
being a huge library," he
said. "I remember coming
here with my friends and
just being in awe."
Green's scholarship
required him to live on
campus for all four years.
The university was only a
few minutes from his
house, so he was able to
keep his barber and attend
his home church, and his
mother was only a phone
call away.
During his sophomore
year, he lived in the
H.O.P.E. (Helping Our
People Excel) House, a stu
dent residence with a com
munity service theme.
House residents mentored
students at low- income
schools, like his former
schools, Paisley and
Parkland.
This was a cause near
to Green's heart. He's been
involved with Big Brothers,
Big Sisters and mentored
students at Kimberley Park
Elementary. He said it's
very important to him to
mentor disadvantaged
youth.
"For them to see that
there are people who look
like them in these spaces -
going to college, being suc
cessful - I think that's very
powerful. I think that can
be very influential in the
lives of young people," he
said.
Green said it was a
change of scenery going
from the predominately
poor, minority public
schools he attended to the
largely white, affluent
Wake Forest, but he always
felt welcome. He said that
he found his niche to fit in
and become involved on
the campus, joining Kappa
Alpha Psi fraternity and
serving as a President's
Aide, being a part of a
group of student advisers to
Wake's president.
"If you give a lot to the
campus, it'll give a lot to
you," he said.
Green initially wanted
to be a business major, but
eventually landed on poli
tics and international
affairs. He did an internship
at a lobbying firm that
worked ,in Washington,
D.C. and fell in love with
the city. During the on
campus Summer
Management Program
(SMP), representatives
from Deloitte came down
to talk about their company
and do a case study with
students. He was able to
connect and network with
people from the company.
"When they told me
they worked with federal
organizations and that
they're based in the
Washington. D.C., area. 1
was basically sold," he^
said.
Eventually they hired
him, and he'll soon move to
Washington, D.C. to begin
his job as a human capital
analyst, helping federal
organizations with their
human resource needs.
Carol, whose daughter
is a teacher and other son is
attending WSSU, said she
was very glad her youngest
son got the chance to attend
Wake Forest.
"It's one of the best
experiences he could have
had," she said.
For more information
about the Joseph G.
Gordon Scholarships, go to
http://financialaid.wfu .edit/
merit-base d -
scholarships/Joseph-g-gor
don -scholarships/.
We're powering future rock stars.
And those "I'm-really-proud-of-her, but-that's-really-loud" moments.
That's why we're investing in new, innovative technologies to keep our systems
smarter, cleaner and always improving for today, and tomorrow. Because we
know what we're delivering is more than just electricity. It's power - for your life.
.DUKE
? ENERGY.
Power for your life.
Quick fact:
We recently completed a decade-long, $9 billion
program to modernize our power plants and retire
almost 4,500 megawatts of older coal-fired units.
Message paid for by Duke Energy shareholders