Inaugural transfer class of Goodnight Scholars begins at NC State

This semester marks the matriculation of the first ever class of NC State transfer students in the prestigious Goodnight Scholars Program for high-achieving STEM students. 

NC State describes the Goodnight Scholars Program as “[I]nvest[ing] in students from low- and middle-income families in North Carolina studying in STEM or STEM education disciplines … not a reward for high school achievement, but rather an investment into a student’s untapped potential.”

The program is financed by Jim Goodnight, CEO of the SAS Institute and former NC State Faculty Member, and provides a value of $19,500 to each recipient per year, the total estimated cost of attendance at NC State.

“This is something we’re very excited about,” said Jason Perry, Goodnight Scholars Program associate director. “Dr. and Mrs. Goodnight approached us and said they’d like to start supporting transfer students as early as next year.”

NC State announced the program would open to transfer students in January and announced the first class of transfer selectees in May 2017.

“It was a lot of work in a short amount of time [but] we made it happen,” Perry said. “I’ve been with this from the beginning and we’re off to a really good start.” 

The 10 selected students began classes at NC State in August. They come from seven North Carolina community colleges and six majors.

“As far as a full ride scholarship for transfer students with a program element on top of it, really nothing like that exists anywhere in the country never mind NC State … there were no other programs to even model off of but it’s really exciting,” Perry said.

Madeline Yun, a third-year studying chemical engineering, is one of the first Goodnight Transfer Scholars to have completed an associate’s degree in engineering at Durham Technical Community College.

“I thought [student loans] were how I would have to get through college, but now I’m graduating without debt,” Yun said. “NC State was definitely my first choice; it’s the only school I applied to. If you want to be an engineer, there’s not really a better school to go to in North Carolina.”

Yun also spoke about her transition to NC State. 

“I’ve adjusted well,” Yun said. “I like being on Centennial, [main] campus is so big … Durham Tech is really small … but the retreat we did the week before school started really helped, we did a scavenger hunt and got to see the school, learn some trivia, that was nice.”

On transferring classes towards her degree, Yun said that “all the courses from Durham Tech that fit my degree plan transferred, well, some didn’t that weren’t in my degree plan but what can you expect.” 

Support for the program has been voiced from the non-transfer wing of the scholar community.

“I really like it,” said Parker Savage, a second-year studying biochemistry, who started his first year at NC State as a conventional Goodnight Scholar. “I’ve met a few of the transfer students and they’re all really interesting people, I’m really happy to be part of a program that is leading the charge on transfer student integration into the NC State community.” 

Richard Trevorrow, a third-year studying computer science, transferred to NC State from Wake County Technical Community College as a Goodnight Scholar. 

“NCSU was my first choice,” Trevorrow said in an email to Technician. “I applied to UNC-Charlotte too, but was really hoping I would get into State. Luckily I did, and receiving news that I was chosen to be a Goodnight Scholar filled me with sincere delight.”

Perry also elaborated on the programming model for transfer students, and the benefits that he perceives to come out of it.

“More than just a scholarship for our transfer students as well as for our first-year students, there’s a full programming model behind it so our transfers have their own transfer cohorts, they have their own transfer workshops … on resume writing, on how to manage one’s time as well as getting exposed to a lot of the awesome cultural resources we have in the Triangle,” Perry said.