Posse program celebrates first graduates

The University of Wisconsin–Madison’s first four Posse Scholars will graduate during commencement ceremonies this spring.

To celebrate their achievements, the university will host a dinner and graduation celebration at 6 p.m. on Monday, April 24, at the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon St. The event is open to the media. More than 50 program participants are expected to attend and will be available for interviews.

Posse was launched in 2002, when 20 students of diverse backgrounds were recruited out of Chicago-area high schools by the Posse Foundation based on their extraordinary academic and leadership potential.

They were awarded four-year scholarships by UW–Madison and placed in supportive, multicultural “posses” of 10 students each. The idea behind the program is that a supportive network of peers and campus mentors can help students of diverse backgrounds thrive in unfamiliar surroundings.

Further, the presence and influence of Posse Scholars on campus can help change a dominant culture, paving the way for increased numbers of participants and making a campus community more welcoming for all students.

Four Posse Scholars are scheduled to graduate in May, with the remainder of the first cohort expected to follow in future semesters. They are:

• Kannitha Sith, who was born in a Cambodia refugee camp during the horror of the Killing Fields. Her parents escaped and came to America with nothing. She is interested in social justice issues, particularly as they relate to educational policy and will graduate with a degree in political science and Afro-American studies.
• Angelina Orozco, a native of Honduras. She is receiving her bachelor of science degree in genetics. She plans to pursue graduate research in molecular genetics and to get her medical degree. Struck by the heartbreaking effects of poverty on children in her home country, she plans to build a medical clinic in La Ceiba, Honduras.
• Momoko Sato, who has earned a bachelor’s degree in textile and apparel design from the UW–Madison School of Human Ecology and a degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Sato came to the United States from Japan when she was 2 years old and plans to impact social attitudes and issues through fashion and textile design.
• Jing Jing Wang, who is receiving a bachelor of business arts degree in actuarial science, risk management and insurance. Equally happy drawing and sculpting as she is running spreadsheets, her goal is to one day start her own insurance company or to run a division of a U.S. insurance company in China.

UW–Madison has 80 Posse students, including 47 from Chicago and 33 from Los Angeles. Another 22 will arrive on campus this fall. Posse is a cornerstone of Plan 2008, the university’s efforts to diversify its student body.