Fourteen Alabama students will head to Washington this fall as part of a prestigious program aimed to help support historically black colleges and universities.

The HBCU Scholar Recognition Program, part of a White House initiative to advance HBCUs, announced its ninth – and largest – cohort Thursday, which includes more than a dozen current and former Alabama students.

The highly selective program honors a diverse group of student leaders who stand out academically and are involved in their communities. This year, 102 students from 70 HBCUs were selected to participate.

Read more: Alabama HBCU enrollment is increasing. See where.

Participants from Alabama colleges include:

• Alabama A&M University: Samarion Flowers of Detroit, Michigan, and Morgan Marshall of Montgomery
• Alabama State University: Haley Heard of Pleasant Grove and Laquann Wilson of Palmyra, New Jersey
• Drake State Community & Technical College: Eddie Tolbert of Tuskegee and Makahla Riley of Madison
• Gadsden State Community College: Jessica Parker of Gadsden
• Miles College: Raquel Liverpool of Brooklyn, New York
• Shelton State Community College: Chiamaka Okafor of Tuscaloosa
• Stillman College: Ta’Kari Bryant of Dothan and Jaela Haynes Williams of Huntsville
• Trenholm State Community College: Matilda Perryman and Thaddeus Sneed of Montgomery
• Tuskegee University: Bruce Taylor of Tuskegee

Two Alabama natives also received awards, including Jamal Maloney Jr., a Lincoln University of Pennsylvania student from Dothan; and Ch’Erykah Dunn, a Paine College student from Troy.

The students will serve as ambassadors for the initiative and their respective colleges. They’ll participate in monthly master classes and attend the annual HBCU Week Conference in Washington, which is designed to teach leadership and professional skills.

They’ll also get the opportunity to meet with officials from the White House and the U.S. Department of Education to help come up with ways to better support students.

“Trenholm State Community College is honored to have two of our students selected for this program. We are extremely excited for Thaddeus and Matilda and for the numerous opportunities and resources that this program will afford to them,” Kemba Chambers, president of Trenholm State Community College, said in a news release.

It’s the third year that Stillman has had at least two students participate in the program.

Williams is an upcoming senior who helped the school win its first-ever Honda Campus All-Star Challenge. She plans to attend law school in the spring.

Bryant, a senior studying psychology, is involved in campus government and advocacy and currently works with the Sickle Cell Disease Association of West Alabama. She plans to pursue a master’s degree in clinical counseling.

“I want to make more connections with the people who work in education and put their focus in bettering HBCUs,” Bryant said in a news release. “I want people to know where Stillman is, know who Stillman is, and understand the transformation it’s making so we can receive more assistance and resources – in addition to what we’re getting.”

Applications closed March 23, 2023 and have not yet opened for next year’s cohort, but you can view a sample application and list of required materials here.

Participants must be a current undergraduate, graduate or professional student at an HBCU.