UCA alumnus, DeKevious Wilson, is making history and taking leadership as an Obama Foundation Scholar.

Wilson is one of 30 scholars chosen from around the world by the Obama Foundation Scholars program to further their education and take their current skills to the next level. Wilson and the scholars will spend the academic year doing hands-on studying, leadership development, networking and mentoring at either Columbia University or the University of Chicago.

“It’s truly an honor to have been selected to be a part of this program. With that, I get a robust experience with my cohort members,” Wilson said.

Through all the learning and experience Wilson will receive as an Obama Foundation Scholar, he says his biggest goal is to leave the program with a better understanding of what life looks like from others’ perspectives. 

“I hope to get a better understanding from my fellow cohort members of what the world

looks like from their point of view. I am blessed to be around so many individuals who are using

their life’s struggles and interests to help create a better community for themselves and others,” Wilson said.

Wilson graduated from UCA with a bachelor’s degree in African/African American studies in 2011. He earned a master’s degree in college student personnel from Arkansas Tech University and is currently pursuing a second master’s degree in public policy at the University of Chicago. 

Despite his scholarly success, Wilson hasn’t forgotten his roots. Originally from West Helena, Arkansas. Wilson attended UCA as an undergraduate and learned how to be a successful student and make the most of his time in college.

“My time at UCA was my training camp for learning balance. I’m still a work in progress. I didn’t know it then, but as I look in retrospect, learning time management was the name

of the game. College is fun and offers so much, but there is a time and place. You’re a student first,” Wilson said.

He now works in Chicago at the south side of Chicago’s Youth Guidance program: Becoming A Man, where he serves as the regional manager. The program encourages academic achievement and aims to reduce violence in boys and young men of color.

“Through my work, I have co-created space for young men to learn, internalize, practice their social cognitive skills and expose them to life after high school through both workforce and postsecondary development. I get to oversee planning, development, coordination, implementation and evaluation of all program activities, staff and the outcomes of program participants,” Wilson said. 

The director of the African/African American studies program at UCA, Michael Kithinji, never met Wilson; however, he shared that the program congratulates Wilson for his success and hopes that the positive reflection of the quality of education offered will inspire current and future students to experience the AAAS program.

“Our alumni, like Wilson, have gone to do great things in different careers like in government, higher education, the corporate world and so on. Current and future students at UCA should know that the program offers unique learning opportunities that prepare them to excel in various fields. It is a loss to attend UCA and not take at least one class in African and African American studies because you cannot find any similar program in the state of Arkansas,” Kithinji said.

Likewise, Wilson said his biggest piece of advice for current students is to lean into fear by joining clubs, taking classes that seem scary or by stepping into leadership positions.

“Honestly, leaning into fear was one of my greatest gifts while being at UCA. It got me out of my comfort zone. Being one of the charter members of the UCA Chapter of NAACP, I was able to co-create programming that helped raise the student voice on campus. Planning ‘classroom walkouts,’ marches, meetings and conferences didn’t come without its struggles and fear. The only way I overcame that was by going through it. Each time, I grew stronger and wiser as a student and a leader,” Wilson said. 

Wilson is part of the Obama Foundation Scholars’ fifth cohort of students. The program began in 2018 and seeks emerging leaders who have made meaningful contributions to their field and possess the ability to positively impact their communities and beyond.