I AM SAVANNAH BOLD

FROM SAVANNAH TO THEAMERICAN DREAMGet into everything. Even though she was from a small town, Brittany Jones '10saw herself doing big things at Savannah State. And nothing was going to stop her.Not even the fact that she didn't have access to the Internet, a fax machine, or a cell

phone. What she did have: SSU and her guidance counselor. With their help, Jones

earned an academic scholarship for her freshman year. That got her to campus.

The rest was up to her.

She dove in. Joined a business sorority. Became a Tiger Ambassador and

orientation leader. Served Savannah high school students with Upward Bound.

Coordinated the Black Executive Exchange Program (BEEP). And asked Kim Stephens

(Miss Savannah State at the time) to be her mentor. For Jones, each opportunity was a

way to connect—and network—with her SSU family.

"Everyone here has so much love for each other and this place. It like a family. Networking is avery big deal. We are here to help each other do something greater" — Brittany Jones'10

Jones, a management major, also benefitted from being part of SSU's College of

Business Administration (COBA). The College aims for each student to have a job

after (or even before) graduation and works hard to get students into jobs and

internships at companies like Microsoft and Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. That's

why COBA is Savannah State's only college with its own placement office. Why it

pioneered a now campus-wide program to get students to dress their best in

professional attire. And why it hosts such events as An Evening with Business

Professionals, an all-in-one networking mixer and career fair.

So when Jones attended an expenses-paid national business conference, she was

armed with an elevator speech, business cards, and the confidence to hold her own at

a table with executives from various corporations. One of those execs? The Vice

President of Human Resources at UPS. A week later, Jones sent the VP her

résumé. A month later, she was hired.

After earning earning their degrees, 71 percent of COBA's 2012-2013 graduates had

jobs related to their majors, and eight percent were enrolled in grad school.

Jones is now a UPS data analyst, tracking volume and revenue for multiple

companies. A huge leap considering she once lived on a dirt road without essential

everyday technology. Now, she's living her American Dream and she says she

owes it all to SSU. "What students learn at Savannah State gets them more than

ready for the corporate business world. You're not on time, you're early. You're

prepared. You're dressed for success. You don't play." Seriously Impressive.