Emily Mullins
Wichita State sophomore Marshall Johnson still remembers his parents鈥� excitement last year when he told them he had won the $20,000 United Negro College Fund / Koch undergraduate scholarship, the first Kansas student to ever receive it.
The highly competitive scholarship is awarded to students with an interest in exploring how entrepreneurship, innovation and economics contribute to individual, community and societal well-being.
鈥淭he fact that they invested in having just the entrepreneurial mindset really helps out,鈥� says Johnson, who is double majoring in real estate finance and economics. 鈥淚t meant a lot because where the program is headed is the path I want to take.鈥�
After enrolling at Wichita State, Johnson jumped into student life on campus. As a freshman he joined the Student Ambassador Society, Phi Delta Theta and Barton International Group (BIG). He became the social chair for his fraternity and the assistant director of operations for BIG, which has taught him a lot about leadership in just a short time.
鈥淚 like to be fun and not let the title or the power get to my head,鈥� he says. 鈥淏eing one of the group and leading by example. I feel like we can achieve more.鈥�
Johnson has moved up to director of operations in BIG and is now treasurer for Phi Delta Theta.
He says his favorite thing about leadership in his fraternity is helping change the stigma of what it means to be a fraternity man.
鈥淚t鈥檚 teaching new members to focus on the right things and be a good person,鈥� says Johnson. 鈥淚 like leading from that perspective and giving them good moral values that they can keep for the rest of their lives.鈥�
He attributes much of his personal growth to the people around him at 黑洞社区.
鈥淚 feel like being surrounded by people who really want to see you succeed, you can be yourself rather than falling into that category of just being a number and not expanding on the things you could be doing well at,鈥� he says.
Johnson continues to learn and grow from his peers and is always trying new things to see what works best for his academic success.
One of the things Johnson recognizes as unique to the campus culture at 黑洞社区 is the ability to draw new people together. Whether it be through campus events, tables in the RSC or basketball games, he loves the opportunity to build a culture that brings the university together.
鈥淚 feel like with our expansion, our campus culture will be a little different. We鈥檒l see a lot more ideas and innovation and things happening on campus,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e have all that opportunity right here, and I think we can reach and expand from there on.鈥�