The Argo Coalition for Education celebrated its latest class of college-bound scholarship recipients at an annual scholarship breakfast May 13, presenting awards to 11 students heading to universities and colleges across the country while also honoring longtime volunteers and spotlighting former alumni who have gone on to earn advanced degrees.
The nonprofit, which has operated for 28 years, awarded scholarships to students planning to study fields ranging from pre-medicine and pre-veterinary medicine to music engineering and psychology. Two named scholarships were also presented: the Reginald Jalen Johnson book scholarship, given in memory of a 19-year-old Northern Illinois University freshman killed in a DUI accident on Feb. 1, 2016, and the Francis George Johnson scholarship, named for a longtime ACE vice president and president who served the organization for 23 years before her death.
Chloe Hale received the Reginald Jalen Johnson scholarship. She will study pre-veterinary medicine at St. Xavier University. Robin Walker received the Francis George Johnson scholarship and will pursue psychology at Western Illinois University.
Kelli Moore with ACE presented scholarships to nine others.
Other recipients and their destinations included:
- Jasim Abdelkariem, University of Iowa, biology on a pre-med track
- Aniyah Brandon,Tennessee State University, exercise science and psychology as a double major, while already taking college courses
- Jack Gaines, University of St. Francis
- Darionna Grimes, Tennessee State University
- Morgan Murphy, Illinois State University
- Karl Smith III, music engineering at Columbia College Chicago
- Shaniyah Snipes, Loyola University New Orleans
- Katelynn White, Trident College
- Joshua Williams, who will begin at Moraine Valley Community College before transferring to Elmhurst University to major in psychology
Several recipients were absent because they were taking Advanced Placement final exams for college credit.
The breakfast also featured a new alumni spotlight segment.
Alexis Ross, a 2020 Argo graduate, told attendees she earned a bachelor’s degree in media studies from Beloit College, a master’s degree in sports journalism from Northwestern University, and now works as assistant creative director at the Emmett Till and Mamie Till Mobley Institute.
James Ross, also a 2020 Argo graduate, completed the welding program at Moraine Valley Community College in 2024 and earned six welding certificates, including an American Welding Society credential.
Brianna Dosher Anderson, a 2019 Argo graduate, earned a bachelor’s in chemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a master’s in environmental engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology, and is currently pursuing a juris doctor at the University of Illinois Chicago.
ACE founder and executive director Bertha L. Jackson was recognized as the organization’s primary fundraiser, with board president Lynette Jones crediting Jackson’s letter campaign as the financial engine behind the scholarships.
Ramona Moore, who has served as ACE secretary for 23 years, received a plaque in recognition of her service. “To Bertha Jackson and the ACE committee, thank you so much for acknowledging what we have done together,” Moore said.
Jones, who described herself as a new addition to ACE leadership, said the organization is restructuring and plans to expand its student preparation sessions beyond the three meetings held this year. Students were required to attend at least two of the three sessions to qualify for a scholarship; nearly all attended all three.
“We want to do more than just show up and hand you a check,” Jones said, adding that the sessions covered practical college advice, including the importance of visiting the bursar’s office immediately upon arrival on campus.
Officials said student names would be added to a running list of all ACE scholarship recipients the organization has supported since its founding.