UNCF, Google award $5,000 scholarship to transfer student

A junior Cal State Long Beach student is one of 11 students selected from across the nation to receive a $5,000 scholarship from the 2007 United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and Google Scholarship Program.

Tanisha Washington, a management information systems major originally from small-town Indiana, plans to use her award to help pay for school expenses such as books and supplies, transportation costs and her relocation from Los Angeles to Long Beach to be closer to campus, according to the CSULB Office of Public Affairs.

This is the second year the scholarship has been awarded. Washington, a transfer student coming from Los Angeles City College, is the first student in the CSU system to receive the award.

"I was stunned to silence, and was barely able to walk across the lab to tell my sister, who is also a student at CSULB, the great news," Washington said. "It was one of the great moments in my life that I will remember forever."

UNCF and Google share the common goal to ensure that America has the requisite scientific and technological talent to compete in today's global economy, as was stated on the scholarship information page on the UNCF website.

UNCF and Google partnered to form the scholarship program aimed toward encouraging students to excel in their studies and become active role models and leaders. The program offers "last dollar" scholarships based upon unmet financial need for students majoring in computer science or computer engineering, according to Google's official blog.

As of 2003, African-Americans accounted for less than four percent of the total scientific and engineering workforce, according to the National Science Foundation. The UNCF/Google Scholarship Program is awarded with hopes of attracting more African-American students interested in the fields of science and technology, as well as help break down financial barriers that may cause African-American students to abandon the pursuit of a college degree.

Awarded to both undergraduate and graduate students, UNCF/Google provides scholarships to students who will be entering their senior year of undergraduate study, or are enrolled in a graduate program at a four-year college or university in the United States.

The program is highly competitive, with recipients coming from MIT, UCLA, Howard University and the University of Virginia.

Students are chosen based upon academic excellence in the fields of computer science or computer engineering, their level of demonstrated leadership within their communities, and their ability to maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 in their current program.

Aside from receiving a $5,000 check in the mail, the winners were all sent a gift bag with Google products, including access to the newest applications and programs Google is currently developing.

Google also invited the select few to a special all-expenses-paid scholars' retreat to be held next spring at Google's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., known as the Googleplex. Washington said at the retreat she will have to opportunity to meet other scholarship winners, attend technical talks, professional development workshops and explore the San Francisco Bay area.

Soon after being notified of her award, Washington was contacted by Google's staffing department, which offered her an internship. While she said she will keep in contact with the company, she has declined the internship for the time being, recognizing that her collegiate career is a full-time job, as she aspires to graduate early.

Washington's post-graduation plan is to begin a successful career in the computer department within a major company such as Google.

Washington's future looks bright, as do her goals.

She said she would "like to realize my dream of starting my own computer company that will cater to the ever-growing systems security needs of large companies," according to the Office of Public Affairs.