{"id":23215,"date":"2020-11-10T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-10T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/design.ncsu.edu\/industrial-design\/2020\/11\/10\/leader-mentor-mother-marva-motley-honored-for-commitment-to-black-students-via-endowed-scholarship\/"},"modified":"2025-06-30T01:43:02","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T05:43:02","slug":"leader-mentor-mother-marva-motley-honored-for-commitment-to-black-students-via-endowed-scholarship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/design.ncsu.edu\/industrial-design\/2020\/11\/10\/leader-mentor-mother-marva-motley-honored-for-commitment-to-black-students-via-endowed-scholarship\/","title":{"rendered":"Leader, Mentor, Mother: Marva Motley Honored for Commitment to Black Students Via Endowed Scholarship"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A mother. That\u2019s how many have described former Assistant Dean of Student Affairs Marva Motley, who worked at the College of Design for 38 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFrom the moment I stepped foot on campus \u2014 Ms. Motley was an advocate for me. She was incredibly selfless, knowledgeable, influential and keenly aware when it came to the needs of her students and the futures we envisioned for ourselves\u201d said Ariana Farquharson [BGD \u201910].<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Countless black students have described Motley as an advocate for them, cheering them on within the college, and helping them navigate any college challenge, whether it was financial aid or help attending a national conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was exactly that degree of support that shaped Tim Allen\u2019s College of Design experience. Allen [MID \u201902], now VP of Design at Airbnb, felt the need to give back to the college. When searching for a way to name his fund and talk about its impact, he couldn\u2019t help but think about Ms. Motley. \u201cLeaders like her left a lasting impression for me and many, many others\u201d he said. \u201cShe taught us not to see obstacles as paths to failure, but as potential new beginnings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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