Kashian Scrivens travelled to Princeton, N.J. to deliver a presentation entitled Just Like Music: Using Hip-Hop As A Means to Understand Poetry.

He is one of eight students to receive the ETS Presidential Scholarship for HBCU Students, which pays each winner’s tuition for the entire academic school year. One of the terms of accepting the scholarship required the students to give an oral presentation on a topic related to their field of study at the Educational Testing Service’s headquarters in Princeton.

Scrivens, a senior English student with a concentration in African-American literature, chose to explain the correlation between hip-hop music and poetry.

“I wanted to show that there is scholarship in hip-hop despite the fact that it is a heavily criticized genre of music,” he said.

He presented in front of ETS members and Princeton representatives as well as college and high school students.

“His presentation was really exceptional. It was clear that he had such a command and knowledge of his subject,” said Lenora Green, senior director of the ETS Center for Advocacy and Philanthropy. “These scholars are truly tomorrow’s leaders. I believe that it is important for people to know that this is the caliber of students that HBCUs are producing.”

ETS is a nonprofit organization that administers and scores tests including the GRE, SAT, PSAT, and many others, and according to Green, it has collaborated with HBCUs for 30 years.

This is the 6th year this scholarship has been awarded to students. Green explained that an external committee selected the winners based on their GPA, campus leadership, and community service among other areas.

Hope Jackson, an A&T English professor received email from ETS about the scholarship and notified Scrivens. He was the first person she thought of when she read the requirements and was aware that he was looking for additional funding and academic support. Scrivens was forced to support himself and take on more financial responsibilities after his father passed away just a month after he began his freshman year.

“My sophomore and junior year I didn’t have enough money to stay in school. I remember getting letters that said if the money wasn’t paid, then I’d have to leave.”

He was leaving work on a summer night when he read the email from ETS on his cell phone that said he would be receiving the scholarship. “As soon as I opened it, my eyes went straight to congratulations,” the Newark, NJ native said. “I bawled. It was a sigh of relief.”

Jackson was one of the first people Scrivens called when he found out. “When they sent him an email, he called me just emotional like ‘I can’t believe this is happening.’” Jackson is his academic adviser and also taught him last year in her African-American film and culture class.

Initially, Scrivens was skeptical about applying.

Students were required to have a minimum GPA of 3.5 as well as a letter of recommendation from their school’s president. Scrivens, who has a 3.67 GPA, was only concerned about the letter.

“I didn’t think I would get the scholarship, and I also didn’t think he would write me a recommendation because he didn’t know me personally,” Scrivens said.

Despite his concern, he met Chancellor Harold L. Martin and began to follow up with him, and sure enough, the chancellor gladly wrote him a letter of recommendation.

“I’m thrilled that Kashian Scrivens received the ETS Presidential Scholarship. His commitment to excellence and academic achievement have indeed prepared him for scholarly success,” Martin said. “I admire him for his high standards and strong work ethic. Students like Kashian consistently set the bar high.”

Scrivens is the third A&T student to receive the scholarship.

• Karmen Robinson, Editor-in-Chief