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Westina Matthews Shatteen - Built Scholarship Program For Underprivileged Children

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Matthews began her professional career in 1982 with the Chicago Community Trust, a grant-making foundation. Three years later Merrill Lynch tapped her to be a manager in its philanthropic programs. Matthews moved to the firm's New York offices and through the positions of assistant vice-president and vice-president to become a director by 1997. She also became the first woman, as well as the first minority, to be elected a trustee for the Merrill Lynch foundation.

One of the most ambitious programs that Matthews helped launch during that time was ScholarshipBuilder. Through the innovative program 250 first graders from across the country were guaranteed tuition to the college of their choice if they graduated. Getting Merrill Lynch to sponsor the program was easy. The hard part was getting it up and running. "It all seemed to rest on me," Matthews recalled to Essence.

At a Glance...

Born on November 8, 1948, in Chillicothe, OH; married Alan Shatteen. Education: University of Dayton, BS, education, 1970; University of Dayton, MS, education, 1974; University of Chicago, PhD, education, 1980; Northwestern University, postdoctoral fellowship, 1981; University of Wisconsin at Madison, postdoctoral fellowship, 1982. Religion: Episcopalian.

Career: Mills Lawn Elementary School, teacher, Yellow Springs, OH, 1970-76; Stanford Research Institute (SRI), administrative assistant, Menlo Park, CA, 1976-77; The Chicago Community Trust, senior program officer, Chicago, IL, 1982-85; Merrill Lynch, director, philanthropic programs, 1985-97; Merrill Lynch, first vice president, global diversity, 1997-2000; Merrill Lynch Bank, senior vice president, community development services, 2000-01; Merrill Lynch, first vice president, community leadership, global private client group, 2001-03; Merrill Lynch, first vice president, community leadership, chief financial office, 2003–.

Memberships: New York City Board of Education, member, 1990-93; University of Dayton, trustee, 2002–; Executive Leadership Council, board member; Bank Street College of Education, trustee; Merrill Lynch Foundation, trustee.

Awards: Black Women Hall of Fame Foundation, Kizzy Award, 1985; New Urban League, New York, Donald H. McGannon Award, 1994; Girl Scout Council of Greater New York, Woman of Distinction Award, 1998; Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts, Corporate Leadership Award, 2001; New York Theological Seminary, Urban Angel Award, 2004.

Addresses: Office—Merrill Lynch, Community Leadership, 4 World Financial Center, 31st Floor, New York, NY, 10080.

With the help of the National Urban League, ScholarshipBuilder launched in 1988. Over the years, Merrill Lynch and its employees donated $16 million to the program. The pay-off was a 90 percent graduation rate among the participating students—a considerable achievement given that these kids came from backgrounds where less than 50 percent usually graduated. Matthews attributed this success to the timing of the program. "No one started as early as we did," she told CBS News. "We started at the first grade. Everything we found out was that you had to start early." For a woman long dedicated to the education of children, ScholarshipBuilder was a fitting legacy.

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