“Im from Greenwood, which is a really small town. Everyone knows everyone, and everybody wants to see everybody make it. We push each other to be the best we can be. So, when it came to academics, extracurricular activities or anything else, people always pushed me to do my best and do things that most people wouldn’t do. Basically, they wanted me to start a wave of everybody doing bigger things coming from our small city.

I chose Jackson State because it’s an HBCU with a great business program. It was an easy decision. My mother is real big on entrepreneurship, and my dad is real heavy in the stock market. And a lot of people in my family own their own businesses. I decided to come here to further my education, so I can take it back home and help my parents, my family, and my own business. I have a clothing line called Tresor, which is French for ‘treasure.’ And I’m actually working on starting another company.

I’ve had a really great experience at Jackson State. I actually started my clothing line a few months into my freshman year. I’ve met a lot of really great people. They’ve helped me a lot and established connections for me that I probably couldn’t have gotten on my own. I love it here. It’s like one big family, and I really don’t think I could have asked for a better school experience so far, aside from COVID.”

– Tia, sophomore entrepreneurship major from Greenwood, Miss.