Because we are committed to the belief that every student should be given the opportunity to attain a college education, we do not have a singular profile with which we choose our candidates. However, since we actively seek students with a wealth of potential, our classes are typically made up of extraordinarily dynamic, highly motivated, and intensely talented students.
Each year we spotlight two of our students. Jessica Lenoir and Ronald Moore are just two examples of our outstanding fellows:
Jessica Lenoir(Class of '06) entered our program with limitless talent but little direction. She was unsure if college was the right place for her, the application process seemed overwhelming, and her diagnostic scores on the pre-ACT were below her expectations. After being awarded an US Empowered fellowship, she refocused on her future, set her goals, and worked relentlessly to achieve her dreams. In two years with our program, Jessica increased her ACT score by four points and got straight A’s every semester in the fellowship. Her GPA soared and she was named Valedictorian of her class with National Honor Society recognition. Jessica is currently earning phenomenal grades in the School of Engineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago where she received a full-ride grant package upon enrollment.
Ronald Moore(Class of ’07) entered US Empowered with a 1.13 GPA at Dunbar Vocational High School, on the south side of Chicago. He was the first to admit that he was not living up to his potential at the onset of school, and he felt lost. However, Ron said that when he heard about US Empowered, he decided it was time for him to either “shape up or ship out”. He put tremendous effort into the application process and when he was awarded a fellowship, he decided to shape up. And shape up he did. Throughout the past two years Ron has gone from a D- average in school to an A- average. He more than doubled his GPA in just two years time, and he finished up high school on the A Honor Roll for the last four semesters. Ron increased his ACT score by three points and was recently admitted to Southern Illinois University, his top choice school! When asked what the program did for him, Ron said simply “US Empowered gave me a shot at life, and look what I did with it.”
Our Fellows
