Fort Valley State University (FVSU) and the 5 Strong Scholarship Foundation, Inc. have announced a partnership to recruit and develop top collegiate leaders and scholars from the Atlanta area who will attend college at FVSU. In addition to scholarship support, academic coursework, leadership opportunities, and professional development programming at FVSU, the 5 Strong Scholarship Foundation will provide intensive training and mentorship to enhance retention and persistence. To become an FVSU/5 Strong Scholar, students must be HOPE-eligible and reside in the Atlanta metropolitan area. FVSU will provide scholarship funding to cover any additional tuition and mandatory fee costs.

Students can apply to become an FVSU/5 Strong Scholar at www.5strongscholars.org.

The goal of the partnership is to ensure that Atlanta-area students have full access to top faculty, intensive professional development programming, research opportunities, and mentorship which can help them fulfill their full potential for global leadership.

“FVSU welcomes brilliant Atlanta-area students to embrace their genius by living, leading, and studying in our empowering educational environment,” said FVSU President Paul Jones. “We invite them to discover the possibilities in their potential for elite scholarship, research, professionalism, innovation, and meaningful service by challenging themselves to achieve at the highest levels.”

FVSU/5 Strong Scholars are recruited in their senior year of high school and must have earned a minimum HOPE grade point average of 3.0. Candidates are recruited and recommended through the 5 Strong Scholarship Foundation.

“A lot of people don’t really understand the true importance of HBCUs,” said Andrew H. Ragland, president and founding partner of the 5 Strong Scholarship Foundation. “Our mission it to help increase the retention and graduation rates at HBCUs. We believe two things are important extremely important to a student in college— funding and support. If a student has both of those, they can be very successful.”

The 5 Strong Foundation helps place five Atlanta-area students at each of its partnering schools, which, in addition to FVSU, include Alabama State University, Alabama A&M University, Bethune-Cookman University, Langston University, Lincoln University, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Fisk University, and Benedict College. The foundation provides mentorship and academic support for students from matriculation through graduation.