Journalist, poet, and performer.

By Sydney Goitia-Doran, The Seattle Medium


Rainier Scholars, a nonprofit organization in Seattle, is opening doors to college for students who are often overlooked in higher education. The program offers more than 12 years of continuous support to each participant, combining academic instruction and leadership development to increase college graduation rates among the most underrepresented student populations on college campuses.


According to the program’s website, 91% of the program’s sch...

By Sydney Goitia-Doran, The Seattle Medium


As part of their overall mission to help students attend and complete college, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) hosts its annual portfolio project to help African American students decide on a college and prepare their application materials.


Linda Thompson-Black, area development director of UNCF Seattle, which includes Washington, Oregon, and Alaska, says the program includes college preparatory resources, access to their annual college and c...

By Sydney Goitia-Doran, The Seattle Medium


        Kyla Marks is on track to become a dentist at 25 — and she will graduate debt-free after securing more than $700,000 in scholarships to fully cover her undergraduate and dental school education.


        It began when her mother, Trinity Chandler, compiled what would eventually become a thick binder of local scholarship information after Marks decided to pursue a degree in the medical field.


        For Marks, entering the medical field...

By Sydney Goitia-Doran, The Seattle Medium


Kennedy Catholic High School student Moniah Gabriel had not attended a pageant before, let alone participated in one. But after her mother signed her up for the Miss HBCU Teen 2025 pageant and her community voiced their support, she stepped onto the stage and shined —ultimately being crowned Miss HBCU Teen 2025.


The Miss HBCU Teen Pageant is a national competition for high school girls committed to attending Historically Black Colleges and Univers...