Drexel’s Celebration of Scholarship Recognizes Students and Supporters

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Drexel's Celebration of Scholarship Recognizes Students and Supporters

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During Drexel University's 2024-2025 academic year, approximately 3,302 students received 779 scholarships, with more than $14 million in donor-funded awards distributed amongst undergraduate and graduate students across the University.

On April 22, 41 of those student scholarship recipients and 68 University supporters came together for Drexel's annual Celebration of Scholarship event. Conversations and networking focused on shared stories and experiences related to their unique backgrounds, disciplines and connections to Drexel.

"These numbers reflect something powerful: Students from every background - every story, every aspiration - are being provided opportunities that change the course of their lives. And I can say that from personal experience. Without access to scholarships, I probably wouldn't be here as your president today," Drexel University President Antonio Merlo, PhD, said at the event. In his recent investiture ceremony, Merlo spoke about his path and personal experiences as a first-generation college student from Italy.

Senior Vice President for Institutional Advancement Laura Turner said that scholarship support is "more critical than ever" during her remarks at the event. She paid tribute to both the achievements of the students receiving scholarships as well as the donors, who enable these opportunities and future pathways.

"At Drexel, scholarships are one of our highest priorities because they create opportunity," she said.

Three student speakers at the event shared their paths to Drexel and what they have accomplished while at the University.

Shanaira Clark, international business and economics '27 from the Bennett S. LeBow College of Business, received the Jody Helene Goldberg Kessel '86 Endowed Scholarship and is from Philadelphia. Clark took a gap year after one year at Drexel and said that the time away from the University revealed an appreciation for learning and value for hard work.

"That is one of the reasons I knew Drexel was the place for me. When I spoke to current students at the time, it seemed that this way of thinking was not unique to me. The students here want to work hard. We want to succeed. We want to surpass expectations and achieve our highest potential," said Clark, who recently completed a co-op at the Drexel Writing Center.

Borniface "BK" Kabongo, a Master of Science candidate in integrated biomedical engineering and business, with a minor in technology development and finance, from the School of Biomedical Engineering and Science and LeBow College of Business, also gave a speech at the event. He spoke about his commercialization work, market sizing, clinical due diligence and financial modeling on a medical subject matter expert AI platform he supports as part of the 2026 cohort of Wallace H. Coulter Translational Fellows. The proposed platform is designed to deliver verified, institution-specific clinical coding evidence to clinicians at point of care. It will be developed by co-principal investigators Edward Kim, PhD, associate professor of computer science in the College of Computing & Informatics; Charles B. Cairns, MD, Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg Dean of the College of Medicine, senior vice president of medical affairs and senior vice president of Drexel Health Operations; and industry partner RespondHealth.

Kabongo received the Biomedical Engineering Endowed Scholarship and is from Lusaka, Zambia; his professional and personal backgrounds inspired him to see the need for such an application.

"I am proud of that work. But I want to be honest about something. None of it happens without margin. Not the intellectual margin; I can back myself in any room. The practical margin. The one that says: you don't have to choose today between your research and other responsibilities. That is what a scholarship provides. That is what you provide," said Kabongo.

Phillip Kinoti, finance, accounting and business law '26 from the LeBow College of Business, spoke about what receiving the Alana Maddox Memorial Scholarship meant to him and his family, and what his path to Drexel has been like from Nairobi, Kenya.

"Nights like tonight reassure me that there are systems created to support growth, recovery and education, and there are people running those systems," said Kinoti, who has been the president of the Drexel African Student Association and a Student Ambassador at Drexel. "There are faces behind every bit of support and big hearts behind every face. Thank you for showing me this; now let me go show the world."

Martin J. Lutz III, '88, '95, established the Martin J. Lutz Endowed Scholarship Fund in 2013 to honor his father, Martin J. Lutz Jr. '63, '67, and provide financial support to LeBow College of Business students. At this year's event, Lutz met with the two recipients of the scholarship in the 2025-2026 academic year: Kyra Kochanowicz, a marketing major, and Charles Farrell, a business and engineering major.

"They spoke candidly about the challenges they've faced and the perseverance that keeps them moving forward toward their goals. They are a powerful reminder of why it's so important to support students striving to pursue and complete their studies at Drexel," said Lutz.