Hostos is pleased to announce that four students—Antoine Hunter, Mohamed Aden, Kingsley Odae, Alex Essiamah—have been named 2019 Kaplan Scholars by the Kaplan Educational Foundation. The Kaplan Scholars program helps high-achieving community college students of color transfer to top colleges and universities to complete their bachelor's degrees.

Hostos’ 2019 Kaplan Scholars are:

Antoine HunerAntoine Hunter: A Harlem resident, Hunter is a liberal arts major and plans to continue his studies in healthcare and eventually work as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. He graduates in May and has enjoyed networking with the diverse student body at Hostos.




Kingsley Odea
Kingsley Odae: Originally from Ghana, West Africa, Odae came to New York in 2017 to further his education and expand his horizons. He plans to transfer after this semester and continue his studies in electrical engineering. He is president of the robotics club at Hostos and is thankful for his mentors, including Hostos STEM professor Moise Koffi.



AlexAlex Essiamah: Also from Ghana, Essiamah came to the U.S. in 2017 to build a better life and achieve his academic and professional goals. The accounting major serves as the budget and finance officer for Hostos’ Student Government Association. After college, he hopes to return to Ghana and open an investment firm that focuses on agriculture. He also wants to help the elderly through his work.



MohamedMohamed Aden: After moving to the United States from Somalia in 2017, Aden enrolled at Hostos in 2018. He graduate after the Fall 2019 semester and eventually would like to work to improve the environment after earning his advanced degree. He is a member of Hostos’ Student Government Association and was selected for the Hostos Engineering Academic Talent Scholarship program.

Kaplan Scholars demonstrate that underrepresented students from low-income backgrounds can complete associate’s degrees, transfer and earn bachelor’s degrees from our nation’s top four-year colleges within three or four years. The competitive program takes students who hold at least a 3.3 GPA, and it achieves results as 92% of the students accepted into the KLP transfer to a senior college; 87% complete their associate degree; and 81% of the Kaplan Scholars who transfer earn a bachelor’s degree. In addition, 100% of the alumni are employed full-time at jobs in their fields of study or in graduate school.

About Hostos Community College
 Eugenio María de Hostos Community College is an educational agent for change that has been transforming and improving the quality of life in the South Bronx and neighboring communities for over half a century. Since 1968, Hostos has been a gateway to intellectual growth and socioeconomic mobility, as well as a point of departure for lifelong learning, success in professional careers, and transfer to advanced higher education programs.
 
 Hostos offers 27 associate degree programs and two certificate programs that facilitate secure transfer to The City University of New York’s (CUNY) four-year colleges or baccalaureate studies at other institutions. The College has an award-winning Division of Continuing Education & Workforce Development that offers professional development courses and certificate-bearing workforce training programs. Hostos is part of CUNY, the nation’s leading urban public university, which serves more than 500,000 students at 25 colleges.