Cornell College partners with Posse to support student leaders

December 1, 2020

Cornell College is one of only 60 select schools chosen to partner with a national organization, Posse, to support the world’s next multicultural generation of leaders.

“Posse selects top-tier colleges to team up with and is known for bringing student-leaders with diverse backgrounds to its partner campuses,” said Cornell College Vice President for Enrollment Management Wendy Beckemeyer. “We are looking forward to meeting the first group of Cornell Posse Scholars during the fall of 2021 as they experience the many benefits of our One Course At A Time curriculum.”

Here’s how the program works:

  • Cornell provides full scholarships to a diverse team of 10 students–a Posse–each year. 
  • Posse recruits high achieving student-leaders from high schools across the U.S. 
  • Posse holds three rounds of interviews and meetings to name finalists.
  • Cornell’s admission team narrows the final pool of candidates to 10 students. 
  • Cornell faculty and staff members will be selected to mentor and work with each new class of Posse students. 

Posse says its scholars are students who may be missed by the traditional college selection process and come from a variety of backgrounds. 

“We are excited to begin a partnership with Cornell College and look forward to working with President Brand, Vice President Beckemeyer, and the rest of the Cornell team,” said Posse President and Founder Deborah Bial. “Their investment illustrates a commitment to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we couldn’t be prouder to work hand in hand with them.”

The organization started in 1989 after one student said, “I never would’ve dropped out of college if I’d had my posse with me.” According to Posse’s mission, the leaders of the 21st century should reflect the country’s rich demographic mix. It also believes the key to a promising future for our nation rests on the ability of strong leaders from wide-ranging backgrounds to develop consensus solutions to complex social problems. 

“Cornell has so many opportunities for students to become leaders in our community, and we know these Posse Scholars will be a great new addition who will bring additional diversity to our campus home,” Beckemeyer said. 

For more information, you can contact the Cornell College Admission Office at admission@cornellcollege.edu.