“Morgan State Alumni Chapter Awards $45,000
In Scholarships In Lieu of MLK Scholarship Breakfast”
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has cancelled many charitable fund-raising events since the Spring of 2020. One such event is the 36th Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholarship Breakfast that was scheduled to take place this weekend. However, the Howard L. Cornish Metropolitan Baltimore Chapter of the Morgan State University Alumni Association would not let the pandemic stand in the way of continuing its annual tradition of awarding much-needed financial assistance to the students at its Alma Mater.
The chapter initially researched hosting a virtual event due to the limitations of the State of Maryland, Baltimore City, and University public-gathering protocols. They quickly discovered that the many technical logistics needed to produce a high quality, entertaining event that would be reflective of the live, publicly attended breakfasts it has hosted over the past thirty-five (35) years made a virtual event impractical to pursue.
Concerned that the perennially sold-out fund-raiser on its calendar would not take place due to the Coronavirus, the chapter implemented a direct-mail campaign and asked its many dedicated supporters to donate whatever level of support they would normally give to the MLK Breakfast. Whether it was purchasing an admission ticket; placing an ad in the event’s souvenir journal; or participating in one of the Special Contributions giving categories.
As a result of the dedication and unprecedented response from fellow alumni and the general public, the chapter will award $45,000 in scholarships to deserving students at the University that will be applied to their Spring Semester tuition.
Many students now face the stress of additional financial pressures due to their families being economically impacted by the virus and not being able to make their normal contributions to help them pay for tuition. These scholarships will be completely funded from the chapter’s direct-mail campaign!
Anthony McPhail, who has served as Chairman of the MLK Scholarship Breakfast for the past thirty-three (33) years stated that “This level of response from our supporters validates the dedication that the Baltimore community has for the extraordinary quality of our event’s programming over the years; and their resolve not to allow the many inconveniences created by the Coronavirus to negatively impact their spirit of giving that further advances the educational mission and vision of our Alma Mater . . . The National Treasure . . . Morgan State University!”
Point-Of-Contact: Anthony C. McPhail, Chairman – MLK Scholarship Breakfast
Anthony McPhail and Corvelli McDaniel, President of the Howard L. Cornish Alumni Chapter are available for Zoom interviews starting Thursday, January 7th.
MOTIVATE, SUPPORT, UNITE!