“You reap what you sow,” is the perfect analogy when describing two Queen College students who were awarded prestigious Investors Bank scholarships at the QC Business Forum in June.
Both pursuing careers in business, Michelle Fang, a graduate student in the master’s in science accounting program and widowed mother, and Raymond Greene, an undergraduate business administration major, were elated when they were chosen out of thousands of other hopeful applicants.
The Investors Bank scholarships worth $2,500 is awarded annually through the Investors Bank Foundation to two students in one of the Queens College business programs (accounting, economics, business administration, business and liberal arts, risk management) with outstanding academic performance of at least a 3.5 grade point average in the major and a track record displaying enthusiasm and/or appreciation for their chosen career.
Fang, who migrated to the U.S. from Shanghai when she was in the eighth-grade, graduated from QC in 2005 with a degree in accounting and information systems, and a few short years later continued her education here, enrolling into the M.S. accounting program where she currently maintains a perfect GPA of 4.0.
Not long after receiving her bachelor’s degree, Fang found work in the accounting field. The blissfulness was short-lived as things took a sudden turn for the worse when her husband passed away leaving her to care solely for their one-year-old son. This incident took a toll on her.
“My whole world was turned upside down,” she said. Coping with his passing with difficult, but the only thing worse than a death of a loved one, is the death of unfilled dreams brought with you to your grave. After some time spent mourning her loss, she got back up and became a certified management accountant, juggling both her studies and the tasks of a single mother. Fang, an aspiring certified public accountant, cannot put into words what winning this award meant to her.
“Receiving this scholarship has impacted my career and future studies in a very positive way,” Fang said. “It’s been a bumpy road the past six years, and I want to thank everyone who helped me get the award, especially my parents and Queens College professors,” she said.
Raymond Greene and Fang were practically neighbors as they have both grown up in Flushing. Greene was raised on the outskirts of the QC Campus, having had attended PS/IS 499 as an adolescent. He is currently enrolled in the undergraduate business administration program with a 3.8 GPA and a pending 2019 graduation.
Summer 2018 just ended and already he has snagged himself an internship with J.P. Morgan next summer. He currently serves as the director of marketing for the business club Association of Latino Professionals for America, as well as vice president of the QC Economics and Business club.
He cited his plans of furthering his education here at QC, enrolling into the master’s in arts in risk management program after graduating next year.
“I’m very attracted to finance because of the complex nature of the industry and its potential for upward mobility,” Greene said.
“This scholarship means a great deal to me, as it will allow me to comfortably attend school and dedicate myself to furthering my career in finance,” he said.
“Queens College has been in my life since I first started attending school,” he added.
“After lagging behind my full potential throughout high school, it was wonderful to be accepted for the award and get a chance at redemption,” he said.
