“This event is not just a ceremony; it’s a moment of pride for our students and their families, reinforcing the importance of education and perseverance. Each year, we are inspired by the stories of our students overcoming challenges and reaching new heights, and this banquet is our way of honoring their journey and encouraging them to continue striving for excellence,” he said.
The pre-college prep Upward Bound program is designed to motivate and provide academic skills for students from first-generation college and low-income families who are interested in pursing an educational program beyond high school. It gives eligible 9-11th grade students an opportunity to learn first-hand what college life is about and helps them develop skills necessary to succeed in college.
“The program during the summer is a very intense six weeks of hard work and intensive instruction provided by dedicated teachers. Students who come to our program want to achieve and make a difference in their lives,” Chambers said.
The keynote speakers were Cierra Kenerly, a 2016 graduate of Shawnee High School, and Bradley Cobb, a 1981 graduate of North High School in Springfield, who were both graduates of the Upward Bound program.
Kenerly earned a doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Tuskegee University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Alabama.
She started in the emergency medical tech program and shadowed veterinarians during her junior and senior years of high school, and later obtained certifications in OSHA, First Aid, CPR and National EMS.
After graduating high school, she earned her B.S. in animal, poultry, and veterinary science at Tuskegee, and became a student athletic trainer through a work study job program.
Kenerly recently chosen to become a member of Tuskegee’s Pre-Vet Med Honors Scholar Program.
Cobb graduated from Wright State University in 1987 and earned his Juris Doctor degree from Wayne State University Law School in Detroit, Mich., in 1995.
After law school graduation, Cobb worked as a pre-hearing attorney for the Michigan Court of Appeals reviewing criminal and civil appeals and writing legal memorandums. He then moved into the prosecutor’s office where he served as lead attorney for the Violent Crimes Unit and principal attorney for the Community Prosecution and Diversion Units.
A member of the ABA, Detroit Bar Association, the Wolverine Bar Association, and the NAACP, Cobb pastored a church in Detroit for 10.5 years before resigning in April of 2023, and was recently appointed as judge to the 3rd Judicial Circuit Court of Wayne County in Detroit, Mich.
Outside the courtroom, Cobb lives in Detroit with his wife, Bernadine, and their two daughters, and is a member of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists-Detroit Chapter and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
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