As we continue to shape young people’s educational journeys, the commitment to fostering growth, support, and opportunity remains a cornerstone of our mission. The impressive number of applications, successful selections, and active participation in our programmes highlight the enduring impact of The Amos Bursary on the lives of students in London and the West Midlands.
2023 IN REVIEW
Our reflective video ‘2023 in Review’ encapsulates the essence of our journey throughout the year. As 2023 swiftly draws to a close, we are excitedly gearing up for the arrival of 2024.
APPLICATIONS ARE STILL OPEN
Be sure to get your application in before they close at 23:59 on 12 January 2024. We’re looking forward to welcoming our new cohort.
With all these new students coming, we need the mentors to support them. Why don’t you join us and empower young people to change the narrative and normalise success?
Our biennial Gala Dinner will take place on Friday, 21 June 2024, and coincides with our 15th year celebration. Keep an eye on our website as tickets go on general sale in January.
Wishing You a Prosperous New Year!
Stay tuned for more inspiring stories from the Amos Bursary community in 2024 as we continue
#PromotingExcellence, #ShapingFutures and #ChangeTheNarrative
As we bid farewell to October, it’s time to look back at the incredible stories and achievements that made this Black History Month so special for us (and there’s a lot!). Our Amos Bursary community continues to shine, promoting excellence, shaping futures and changing the narrative. Here’s a roundup of our top stories.
SALUTING OUR SISTERS
To mark this year’s Black History Month theme of ‘Celebrating or Sisters’, our students and alumni weighed in on the amazing black women they wanted to celebrate.
PROMOTING EXCELLENCE
Samuel Olajugba, a trailblazing Politics and International Relations undergraduate at the University of Kent, embodies excellence, inspires positive change and is ready to make waves at Anthropy UK. 🔗Read more
Ife Alabi, a Warwick Law undergraduate, empowers Midlands youth with a mindset of resilience and LinkedIn expertise, fostering opportunities for growth and achievement. 🔗Read more
Nike Ajijola‘s remarkable speech at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre encourages others to embrace opportunities, seek support, and network with everyone. 🔗 Read more
Alumni Seun Sontan and Gabriel Amida and their team once again brought together African Caribbean Societies from universities across the UK to the Live Nation x Amos Bursary ACS Leadership Summit. 🔗Read more
SHAPING FUTURES
On the first day of the month, one of our Charity Partners, Ideas Foundation, shared how we joined forces to offer Amos students incredible opportunities to nurture their creative talents. 🔗 Read more
Grant Thornton staff gave up their office and their time to introduce students to the world of accounting and financial services with a real-world perspective. It’s been amazing to read some of the employees’ accounts. 🔗 Read more 🔗 Jessica Winter’s thoughts 🔗 Carly Gordon’s wishes
Linklaters opened their doors once again for our Student Development Day where we went through CV Writing, Interviews and Preparation For the World of Work. 🔗 What Awa Amon had to say🔗 Alexia Manentsa’s account
Amos students gained valuable insights at a speed networking session put on by Brown Brothers Harriman at their London HQ. 🔗 Read more
CHANGING THE NARRATIVE
Bank of America opened its doors for the official launch of The Amos BursaryUnder 16 Progressive Network, designed to help students thrive at school and transition successfully into life after GCSEs.
Rokos Capital Management hosted their Black History Month event, which included a book signing by entrepreneur, author and social commentator (oh and did we say Amos Alumnus and Ambassador), Kenny Imafidon. 🔗 Read more 🔗What Kavaughn had to say🔗Read Destiny’s account
Linklaters hosted the Black Apprentice Network’s BHM Conference reviewing the accomplishments of the network in the last year while also providing a glimpse into the upcoming plans for their community in the months ahead. 🔗Read more
Bukunmi Oloyede reminded us how delighted she was to have been selected for the Mission 44 Youth Advisory Board. As an aspiring engineer, she considers it a profound privilege to be a part of this inspirational charity dedicated to driving transformative change. 🔗Read more
Cambridge undergraduate, Amber Morrison spoke at PwC’s virtual town hall meeting explaining what ‘Saluting our Sisters’ means to her as part of our first female cohort and how these bold young women are being equipped to bridge the Authority Gap as they prepare to enter the world of work.
Standard Chartered Bank Celebrated Black History Month, extending their welcome to The Amos Bursary. We were privileged to be able to enjoy the live sounds of the amazing YolanDa Brown and her band. 🔗Read more
Jibril Rose received the Inspired Youth Award from the Association of Jamaican Nationals UK and got the chance to discuss government policy and the issues people are facing in today’s society at No.10! 🔗Read more
They say things come in threes, well Amos Alumni and Ambassador, George ImafidonMBE thought he would keep that trend going this month, in a spectacular way…
1. The Prince of Wales presented the Kid fromPrince of Peckham with an MBE no less for services to engineering, technology and young people! 🔗Read more
2. George was awarded Entrepreneur Rising Star of the Year by Barclays and The Black British Business Awards for the work of his organisation Motivez. 🔗 Read more
3. KPMG recognised Motivez as the Most Promising Non-Profit Organisation. 🔗Read more
ELSEWHERE IN THE COMMUNITY
CELEBRATE Johansel Emanuel Hernandez Pena and Sharon Ukpere both reaching their fundraising goals. They will both be off on the Amos Bursary International Experience to Lisbon, Portugal this year – Web Summit here they come. 🔗Johansel’s fundraising journey🔗Sharon’s fundraising journey
🔗SUPPORT Amos Mentor and donor of over 150 suits to our students, Michael Barrington-Hibbert, is standing as a candidate for Alderman of the City of London. If successful Michael will be the first black Alderman!
🔗CONGRATULATE Amos supporter, Elicia McKenzie who shone at LCCI Black Excellence Awards.
🔗WATCH Amos Alumni Karl Kareem Melami reveal the Sisters he celebrates not just in Black History Month. Spoiler alert, we all salute them for where we are today!
Amos Bursary Alumnus and Ambassador, George Imafidon, is awarded an MBE in the King’s Birthday List for services to young people and STEM sectors.
The honour recognises his outstanding achievements and service to the community which has had a long-term, significant impact.
Here To Serve
At age 26, George is CEO and co-founder of Motivez, an award-winning youth-led organisation founded in 2015, which empowers underserved young people aged 14 – 25 to access entry-level STEM jobs and become changemakers. They have inspired millions worldwide through their campaigns and directly supported over 9,000 young people in the UK over the past eight years through their grassroots, employability, and advocacy programmes where they develop local STEM changemakers transforming their communities. Their work has been highly commended and supported by the likes of the Royal Family, Sir Lewis Hamilton MBE, Idris Elba OBE and Beyonce.
Purpose Driven
In addition to his work as a social entrepreneur, George also holds the title of the Young Engineer of the Year 2022/23, awarded by the Royal Academy of Engineering. As an advocate for sustainable motorsport, he works as a Race Engineer with Sir Lewis Hamilton MBE’s X44 Vida Carbon Racing team. The electric off-road race team, competing as part of the Extreme E series, aims to break down the barriers to entry into the motorsport industry and create a more diverse and inclusive environment within the sport. X44 Vida Carbon also uses its platform to draw attention to environmental issues by racing in the world’s most remote locations affected by the climate crisis; and in 2022 won the Extreme E championship to conclude George’s second season with the team.
Better Together
As a diversity champion, George took a gap year from his degree studies and dedicated it to fundraising for the #AB1Million campaign, raising £1 million for the Amos Bursary to ensure other talented young people of African and Caribbean descent have the opportunities that have been afforded to him.
Colleen Amos OBE, CEO of The Amos Bursary said “This is such a well-deserved honour. The work George does with Motivez is an overflow of his passion for improving lives. As an Amos Bursary alumni, he continues to support Amos students. His passion for engineering and work with the Lewis Hamilton Foundation will impact positively on young people for years to come.”
Upon receiving the MBE, George shared “I’m honoured and grateful to receive the MBE for services to engineering, technology and young people. It’s been a privilege to use my voice over the last decade for so many of us who feel unseen, opening up trajectories in STEM for communities traditionally far removed from the industry. I really hope this recognition can open more doors for those that are underserved and goes some way to instilling hope on their journey.”
Achievements
2022: Young Engineer of the Year Award by Royal Academy of Engineering
2022: Extreme E World Champion by Extreme E
2022: Sir George MacFarlane Award by Royal Academy of Engineering
2021: Changing The Narrative Peer Award for Social Equity by The Amos Bursary
2021: Appointed as a Trustee of the Co-op Foundation
2020: The Powerlist Community Award by Powerful Media
2018: Diana Award by The Diana Award
2017: The UK’s Top Black Students by Rare Recruitment
The accolades just keep coming. We can’t wait to see what’s next for the Humanitarian Engineer.
We are so proud to announce that Extreme-E racing pioneer, social mobility advocate and Amos Alumni Ambassador George Imafidon has received two of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s highest accolades – Young Engineer of the Year and the Sir George Macfarlane Medal.
The award and medal, recognise the potential of engineers working in the UK who have demonstrated excellence in the early stage of their career. George received the medal – named after wartime radar pioneer Sir George Macfarlane – at the Academy Awards Dinner in London on Tuesday 12 July 2022.
George Imafidon is a Performance Engineer working with Sir Lewis Hamilton HonFREng’s Team X44 electric racing team to design Extreme-E race cars. The motorsport team, founded in September 2020, aims to draw attention to environmental issues by racing in remote locations affected by the climate crisis.
George’s fascination with mechanics stems from his formative years spent fixing bikes for his friends in South East London, a pastime that would eventually lead him to graduate from University College London with a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.
In addition to his E-racing career, George is also CEO and co-founder of Motivez, an app designed to help young people from underrepresented backgrounds access personalised opportunities, particularly within science, technology, engineering and maths.
George’s commitment to platforming underrepresented voices was further evidenced by his appointment in September 2020 to the Board of Commissioners for Sir Lewis Hamilton’s Commission set up jointly with the Royal Academy of Engineering to address the underrepresentation of Black people in UK motorsport. As a young Black engineer, George was able to advise and guide the Commission’s work, introduce the research team to key stakeholders and young engineers for interviews and steer the final report that enabled the Commission to achieve high public profile and political attention for this issue.
George took a gap year during his university studies to fundraise for the #AB1Million campaign, raising £1 million for the Amos Bursary to ensure talented young people of African and Caribbean descent have the opportunity to excel in education and beyond.
George has received many prestigious awards and accolades including a Princess Diana Award, Accenture Entrepreneurial Excellence Award, Top 10 Future Leaders Award, UK Top 10 Black Students award and features in the 2021 Powerlist. He is also featured in the 2021 series of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s This is Engineering videos, designed to encourage young people from all backgrounds to follow what they love doing into a career in engineering.
Colleen Amos OBE, CEO and co-founder of the Amos Bursary, says “George is passionate about building products that improve lives and communities and over the past five years, he has worked across engineering, technology, consulting, and finance with firms such as Google, Rolls-Royce, J.P Morgan, BCG and now with Team X44. He is a firm believer in creating opportunities where people see obstacles and ensuring everywhere he goes is better than he found it.”
Professor Bashir Al-Hashimi CBE FREng, Chair of the Royal Academy of Engineering Awards Committee, says: “Our Young Engineers of the Year are pushing back the boundaries of modern engineering and creating genuinely new economic opportunities in the process. They are also fantastic role models for any young person considering whether to join the engineering profession. I congratulate them all.”
George speaks about receiving the award on ITV News 3rd Aug 2022
Suvera has secured £5 million in its first public seed extension financing round led by Morningside Ventures, allowing them to reach thousands more patients. As stated by the startup “The investment will allow the company to continue to invest in our people, and technology to reach more patients and partners across the UK”.
Born from an idea by Amos Alumnus and Ambassador Dr Ivan Beckley, to tackle the lack of information on medication instructions in 2016, to developing a virtual care platform contracted by GPs surgeries across the country, Suvera is making its mark in the liminal space of medicine and technology.
Suvera is a unique virtual care platform. They help general practitioners virtually manage patients with hypertension and diabetes, using a dedicated remote care team and its in-house technology, resulting in 20,000 patients from across 40 GPs being supported.
This announcement brings the total backing for the company to £7 million, with previous support from Google’s Black Founders Fund, Calm/Storm Ventures, Ascension Ventures and Angel Investors including; Stephen Bourke, Matthew Miller, Chris Kelly, Colin Salmon and others.
At the Bursary, we are proud of the way our alumni are bringing solutions to the world’s problems and leading the way for change. With the mission Suvera has set out on, the sentiment for leading change remains true, as it continues to pursue a world where managing your health conditions is no longer burdensome.
Great news to start the month. Forbes 30 under 30 Europe lists Amos Alumni, Kenny Imafidon and Burphy Zumu under the category of Social Impact.
The list recognises the top 30 most impactful entrepreneurs under the age of 30 in Europe. It shows the power young leaders have to transform business and society.
Both Kenny and Burphy are humbled to be named on the list. Kenny commented on social media, “It’s always a blessing to be recognised for the work that we do. Although we don’t do it for the recognition, but to make an impact.” Burphy echoed his sentiments, “It is truly a blessing to be recognised in such a manner. Even more so in the month that marks an important anniversary for us!”
Burphy and Kenny, along with Leonie Bellio founded ClearView Research in May 2015. The company specialises in working with groups that are usually underrepresented in research.
Here at The AMOS Bursary, we have first-hand experience of the social impact of these two young men from our 2010 and 2012 cohorts. They both serve as “big brothers” to our younger students, motivating and supporting them on their journeys. They are also regular speakers on the AMOS Excellence Programme, offering insights from their personal experiences. Most recently they have taken the AMOS Bursary value of community spirit to the next level, as ClearView Research has become one of our corporate partners.
Forbes says, “The 30 Under 30 offers an annual opportunity to embrace the optimism, inventiveness and boldness of youth.” We say they couldn’t have picked two better people to represent those values than Burphy Zumu and Kenny Imafidon.
We’re always eager to share the knowledge so this World Book Day some of our alumni gave us an insight into their top reads.
The answers were nothing less than insightful so get ready for a bookshelf restock after you check these out.
What book has had the biggest impact on your life to date and why?
“Since 2019, I’ve re-read this book over 4 times, bought it for my entire team and lived by all the teachings. It helped me pin down my purpose and taught me how to prioritise and win in all areas of my life (spiritually, physically, emotionally, professionally and financially). It came at a time when I would always get burned out. Thankfully since reading and taking the actions, that hasn’t happened again.”
“This showed me how ADHD can be a superpower!”
“This opened my mind to the wide range of aspects within the world of investing. It provides many great ideas on how to successfully invest in the stock market. There’s something in here for both new and experienced investors.”
“This book reinforced my understanding of how to embrace my versatility.”
“Reading this made me understand how detrimental limiting beliefs are to your capability of reaching your potential and taught me one of the mindsets universal to high achievers.”
“It’s more a business leadership book, however, in the abstract, the principles are applicable in leading one’s self to greatness. After reading it, I could instantly see the principle play out in real life.”
2. What is your number one must-read recommendation for all AB Students (other than Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, which we all know is an AMOS Bursary staple!)?
3. What was the last book you read?
“We couldn’t have a book recommendation list without mentioning this staple of The AMOS Bursary”
So like we said, time for a bookshelf re-stock! If you do pick up any of the recommendations above share your own review with us in the comments. Happy Reading!
This October we will not only be acknowledging our inspiring black history, but #ChangingTheNarrative and celebrating our very own Black History Makers!
Everyday AMOS Bursary alumni are #PromotingExcellence and #ShapingFutures that will be written about in history books to come. Throughout the month we will be spotlighting a number of our pioneering alumni and introducing you to the people that inspire them to excel.
Kenny is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of ClearView Research Ltd, which specialises in research focussing on young people and underrepresented communities. The only black person on the board, In July he was instrumental in securing £10 million over 10 years making a difference to improve the lives of young black people in the UK. He said “I am excited about this new fund and I truly believe that this is the beginning of greater things to come as we continue on our mission to support children and young people most in need and create a greater focus on the challenges faced by young black people in the UK.”
In addition to his role on BBC Children in Need’s Board of Trustees, Kenny is a Trustee of several other charities, a member of the advisory board of the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust and co-founder of a prison programme called ‘My Brother’s Keeper’.
