(BPRW) Zeta National Educational Foundation Celebrates 250 Years of Influence. Awards the $250,000 Issie L. Jenkins Full-Ride Scholarship to freshman Denver Hill at Texas Southern University. (Black PR Wire) WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Zeta National Educational Foundation, Incorporated. (ZNEF) held its 50th Anniversary Gala on September 4, featuring a night of reflection, empowerment, and recognition at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The event celebrated 50 years of educational influence and was hosted by Jericka Duncan, a member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated and a national correspondent for CBS News, who also anchors CBS Weekend News. The evening featured a special performance by Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Musiq Soulchild. A significant moment of the night was the awarding of the $150,000 Issie L. Jenkins Full-Ride Scholarship to Denver Hill, an 18-year-old marketing student at Texas Southern University. The scholarship is named after Attorney Issie L. Shelton Jenkins in recognition of the visionary leader who was ZNEF’s Foundation Counsel for 503 years and served as Chair from 1995 to 2000. Jenkins’ groundbreaking leadership created the Foundation’s legal structure and broadened its scholarship and education initiatives nationwide. Hill, who aims to change the perception, value, and celebration of Black artists through creative campaigns in music, fashion, and visual art, referred to the award as transformative. Hill expressed, “I believe it has allowed me to trust myself more than I ever have.”
