SU guides student to career opportunity
|
Posted By: Hija Chang on July 22, 2016 Tony Hunter’s dream of working at Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) began at Southern University and A&M College in 2014 when he was an undergraduate student in the College of Business. His dreams became a reality during Father’s Day weekend of 2016 when he accepted a position with TMCF as an executive assistance to the President and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, Johnny C. Taylor Jr. and Vice President of Programs, M. Scott Lilly. “This will be my first time moving out of the state. I am most excited about meeting new people and getting adjusted to this new way of life. It (Washington D.C.) is a big city and I will have to adjust to riding the metro,” said Hunter excitedly. Hunter credits this amazing opportunity to hard work, the SU College of Business, and the SU Office of Career Services. While a student, Hunter had the opportunity to volunteer and attend the 2014 Opportunity Funding Corporation Conference (OFCU) in Atlanta, Georgia through the College of Business and Thurgood Marshall College Fund. Pleased with Hunter’s work ethic, TMCF called him back in September, the same year, to attend and volunteer at the Leadership Institute in Washington, D.C. Hunter was then asked back in 2015. “I stayed in contact with them and worked hard. I just made sure I worked hard and provided a great presentation,” said Hunter. Having the opportunity to volunteer at these events helped prepared Hunter for what would come in June. Hunter remained in contact with Scott Lilly, and continued to use the resources available in the SU Office of Career Services, even after graduating and being employed as a recruiter at Southern University Baton Rouge. Keeping his resume and LinkedIn updated, Hunter often visited the Office of Career Services and Tamara Montgomery, director of Career Services, to refine his resume and fine-tune what he already had in place. That was a huge factor in the new job, according to Hunter. “He came to me last year to review his resume and shared his future plans and goals. We had several meetings and discussions about his future and we perfected his resume and his interviewing skills,” said Montgomery. “What I appreciate most about Tony is that he has the ability to listen, learn and practice the key principle that we teach in the center. He was persistent and passionate about this opportunity and we are excited that we were able to assist him on his journey by providing him with the proper guidance and career advice.” Hunter took advantage of the tools in the Office of Career Services such as: the career fairs, portfolio reviews, resume critiques, and mock interviews. Hunter stressed the importance of being involved in Career Services post graduation when it came to landing this job. “My reasoning for going back, a lot of my classmates have pretty big roles at companies, I know two or three of them that work at Microsoft and they went through Career Services,” said Hunter. “They told me to reach out to Mrs. Montgomery because her services really get you molded for what the companies are looking for, like saying those key words on your resume that companies check out.” Montgomery says she encourages her students to volunteer and give their time. “Tony is a true example that when you give, it shall be given back to you. Our students must know and understand why they are attending the University. Tony is the example that they need to see. He will tell them that working hard, having excellent soft skills, receiving a solid education at Southern University and visiting the career center will pay off,” said Montgomery. Hunter hopes to gain a bigger level of professionalism from this new position, and “building my career with the network being presented. I hope to learn something that I can take back to Southern and students just like me, so they can say, ‘Well he went here and he made it.’” Hunter moved to Washington D.C. on July 8, 2016 to begin his amazing journey. The SU Career Services Center works very closely with the TMCF Leadership Institute. Each year 10-15 SU students attend the event or serve as volunteers. The Annual Leadership Institute and Recruitment Fair is the premier recruitment conference for public HBCU students. For the past decade, this four-day conference has given talented future leaders a unique professional development experience. Carefully selected groups of students are brought together with some of the nation’s top executives for leadership training, career management, life skills development and recruitment opportunities. One of the main components of the Leadership Institute is the Recruitment Fair, where students meet with over 60 companies and government agencies offering employment and internship opportunities. If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
 |
Hija Chang
Management, See Moss Interactive Bellarmine University class of 2021 Member Since January 2011 |
Comments
More From This Author
Latest Career Content
 |
Launch Your Career with SinclairSinclair, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI) is a diversified multimedia company connecting audiences through local news, live sports, digital content, and premium entertainment brands nationwide.
From broadcasti ...more
luisa velasco • 1,216 Views • May 18th, 2026 |
 |
Sun River Health Is Hiring: Make a Difference in Communities That Need It MostFor professionals looking to build meaningful careers in healthcare, community impact, and patient advocacy, Sun River Health is expanding its team across multiple locations and specialties.
With a ...more
Reginald Culpepper • 606 Views • May 18th, 2026 |
 |
Monster.com 🧏🏼♂️ let's hear from Job experts about the path to career answers and insighTJeff Taylor founded Monster.com in 1994 and revolutionized how the world finds jobs. Now at 63, he's back to destroy what he created.
In this episode of Talent Take Five, Jeff shares why the recrui ...more
Hija Chang • 358 Views • May 15th, 2026 |
Popular Career Content
 |
PAID, federal internships with the Federal Diversity Internship Initiative!The Washington Center Federal Diversity Internship Initiative Now is your chance to apply for paid fall internships with the Federal Diversity Internship Initiative! This is your once-in-a-lifetime op ...more
Reginald Culpepper • 43,463 Views • June 14th, 2017 |
 |
Today's Success Tip: Joachim de Posada says, Don't eat the marshmallow...yetWe were invited to the National Association of African Americans in Human Resource's reception held at the
Atlanta Marriott Marquis during the SHRM conference, and the gift/tip we walked away with w ...more
Hija Chang • 41,887 Views • June 29th, 2012 |
