By Kenneth Mullinax
A recent Alabama State University alumna, Zakiyah Stirrup (ASU ’21), was selected as an HBCU Fellow and is now enrolled in graduate school at Columbia University with all of her expenses paid.
Stirrup, who graduated from ASU’s Percy J. Vaughn College of Business Administration (COBA) with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, is now studying Human Capital Management at Columbia. She was a standout student at the University and her many accomplishments included being a W.E.B. DuBois Honor Student, a chapter founder of the Phi Alpha Delta pre-law organization and an active member of the ASU Student Government Association.
“I am both humbled and excited to be in graduate school at Columbia University where I hope to use the degree and experience to one day obtain a career as a talent acquisition professional, focusing on diversity, inclusion, and equity,” Stirrup said. “I am proud to be the first ASU student to be accepted into the program here at Columbia and wish to thank COBA’s Dean Kamal Hingorani, Dr. Sara Kiser (professor of Management) and so many more faculty members for all of their encouragement, assistance and advice.”
COBA DEAN PRAISES STIRRUP’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS
“This speaks volumes of the importance of a student concentrating on their studies, which is the case for Ms. Stirrup, who was a student-scholar at Alabama State and one of our COBA stand-out students,” said COBA Dean Kamal Hingorani. “It is a great accomplishment to have a student accepted into an Ivy League graduate school. It is great for having her education at Columbia being paid for by their school, which also speaks highly of the COBA faculty which gave her the tools to sharpen her mind.”
ABOUT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY’S HBCU FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM
The Columbia University HBCU Fellowship program prepares talented, high-performing HBCU graduates to lead, innovate, drive community impact, and advance their professional industries through program engagement, mentorship, and career development opportunities. Columbia University is an Ivy League school with a rigorous curriculum and application process.
STIRRUP AFFIRMS ASU’S VALUE
Stirrup, now an Ivy League Fellow, credits much of her success to Alabama State University.
“The opportunity and the tools that I received at Alabama State University are valuable beyond measure to me,” Stirrup said.
