Detroit-Based Ally Affords Opportunities to MGP Alumni
One of the many benefits that the Midnight Golf Program offers its students is access its vast professional network. Whether it is through one of our 60 mentors, staff or the 2,800 alumni represented throughout the world, alumna like Erin Martin who take advantage of these connections are often rewarded with unique experiences they will not get anywhere else.
Earlier this year, MGP College Success Coach Winston Coffee, told Erin about an opportunity at Ally called Moguls in the Making. Once she was there, Demetrius Scott (MGP ’07) looked out for Erin. Demetrius is Manager of Corporate Citizenship at Ally and helped organize the ‘Shark Tank’-like competition hosted by Hip Hop Artist and Detroit native, Big Sean, Ally and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. Fifty HBCU students competed over three days in teams of five to solve a Detroit-based problem.
A video about Moguls in the Making.
Not only did students like Erin receive this invaluable experience but Ally CEO Jeff Brown offered all 50 Mogul participants internships this summer. Erin, along with 14 other Mogul participants, took him up on his offer. She spent the summer working at Ally’s Charlotte, NC office.
She worked in the ideation studio developing a program for the Corporate Citizenship department.
“The culture at Ally is hard to explain but you don’t expect a Fortune 500 to have a family environment. I love the atmosphere,” Erin said. “I worked on a real project they will be implementing next year. We presented the final project to most of C-suite executives including the CEO. They loved it. I was actually asked by the CEO ‘Okay Erin, how should we go from here?’ That was one of the biggest moments of my internship.”
For Demetrius, Moguls in the Making and being able to help talented HBCU students through an internship experience is all in working towards Ally’s goal of attracting top talent. Demetrius has also been an MGP mentor for six years and is the lead for the Tuesday/Thursday cohort.
“As an alum of the [Midnight Golf] program and knowing how it has helped though my career, it’s very rewarding to be part of it from a mentor perspective and help with job placement. MGP works and the circle of support allows me to help,” he said.
While studying during her junior year at Alabama A&M, Erin is also launching her own small business, The 24 Movement (on Instagram @the.24movement).
“I’m in full student-preneur mode. My summer with Ally helped me build that network and support. This is what I want to do with the rest of my life,” she said.
Erin and Demetrius recently attended the Thurgood Marshall Fund Leadership Institute in Washington, DC.
