August 12 : Welcome Back!

We’d like to welcome students, staff, and faculty back to Spelman College for the 2022-2023 academic year. As we return to campus, may we be reminded that Spelman is more than an educational institution – it’s an incubator for innovation and success, a space where peers become family, a symbol of enduring strength, growth and resilience and, for so many, the embodiment of sisterhood.

Here’s to another historic year for Spelman College. We look forward to a great academic year ahead, and we look forward to sharing many more great stories!

The HBCU Founders Initiative (HBCUFI) and Spelman College are partnering for an eight (8) week campus-dedicated pre-accelerator program. The program targets early-stage founders who are past the ideation stage and ready to validate a problem and build an MVP.

Topics including pre-accelerator program will include topics such as validating the idea, building a prototype, customer discovery, marketing and branding, legal operations and fundraising will be presented in weekly virtual cohort sessions with additional planned on-campus activities. Participants will have access to office hours with advisors who will help them along their entrepreneurial journey in efforts to ensure that they are supported and nurtured. In addition, participants will be eligible to receive non-dilutive program awards in support of MVP development.

The HBCU Pre-Accelerator program is a cooperative effort supported by both the HBCUFI and UNCF TechVentures, a tech-entrepreneurial education and training program for African American students participating in UNCF STEM programs. The inaugural cohort of HBCUs also includes Bowie State University, Elizabeth City State University, Morgan State University, North Carolina A&T University, Oakwood University and Prairie View A&M.

Applications are open now through August 19th, at 11:59 PM PST. Alumni applications will be reviewed, but preference will be given to current students.

To learn more about the HBCU Pre-Accelerator program and apply today, click here.

This week marks the start of Spelman’s New Student Orientation (NSO) and the formal welcoming of the Class of 2026.

Running from August 10th through August 18th, this year’s NSO program – aptly themed "Undaunted by the Fight – seeks to accomplish the following:
Facilitate the smooth transition of new students, including transfer, international, domestic exchange, and Pauline E. Drake scholars to the Spelman community;
Introduce all students to Spelman’s educational mission, history and unique opportunities;
Provide academic advisement and course registration;
Aid students in understanding their responsibilities as members of the Spelman College academic and social communities;
Provide all new students with opportunities for social and recreational activities that develop sisterhood and supportive networks and that foster a sense of school pride.

Incoming first-year students are expected to attend all programs and activities, as the programs will help them successfully navigate the Spelman College experience. All changes to the New Student Orientation schedule will be posted on the mySpelman portal under the tab labeled New Student Orientation.

Due to updated COVID-10 protocols, please be mindful that masks are required during all NSO programs and activities and are available at stations in all campus buildings and gathering spaces.

For more information on NSO 2022, click here. For NSO FAQs, click here.

Chrystal Stokes Williams, C’94, recently had the opportunity to stand in a very special spot – right above the New York Stock Exchange to ring its Opening Bell.

"It was a privilege to represent both the young adults we serve and the dedicated staff who execute on our mission to match talented young people with access to opportunity," Stokes said in a LinkedIn post.

Williams is the chief financial officer of Year Up – an organization committed to ensuring equitable access to economic opportunity, education and justice for all young adults.
Since her time at Spelman, Williams has held positions at some of the world’s notable financial institutions including Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan and American Express. Williams also holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

In her role with Year Up, Williams is responsible for all aspects of financial management, supporting the growth and transformation of the organization and serving as a business partner and strategist in the organization's oversight.

To see video of Williams at the Opening Bell ringing, click here.