KINGSTON, R.I. – Jan. 31, 2022 – Talent Development has marked many milestones in its nearly 54 years at the University of Rhode Island while helping more than 4,000 students from disadvantaged backgrounds earn college degrees. On Wednesday, the program celebrated another momentous occasion with the official opening of the Talent Development Achievement House, fulfilling a more than two-decade goal to establish a residence facility for TD scholars.

URI President Marc Parlange, Vice President for Student Affairs Kathy Collins, Housing and Residential Life Director Frankie Minor, and Talent Development Director Gerald Williams joined about 40 people Wednesday afternoon for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the front lawn of the Achievement House at 22 Upper College Road.

“In 1968, 13 students braved the campus of the University of Rhode Island with a badge that they had to wear everywhere they went. And that badge said ‘program for disadvantaged youth’ – in 1968,” said Williams, standing on the front landing, between the large pillars of the yellow clapboard house. “How far we have come to 2022, in which we know that those 13 students have turned into 1,300 scholars. We now know that that badge has turned into a plaque that says the TD Achievement House, in 2022. That could not have happened without all of your support. So, all of you who are here today, we thank you, TD nation thanks you.”

Williams acknowledged the leadership of Dr. Harold Langlois, Rev. Arthur Hardge and Leo DiMaio in founding the Talent Development program in 1968 after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and thanked Parlange for his commitment to the opening of the TD House after taking over as president in August, and Collins and Minor for their long work in establishing the residence.

Collins noted the years-long work of Talent Development to get a dedicated house, and the house’s importance – along with the Gender and Sexuality Center and the Welcome Center – at the top of campus, placing the University’s values in plain view of visitors and prospective students as they enter campus.

“For 20 years, the [Talent Development] staff has been asking for such a place for our students and community to gather, to learn, develop, and grow – and graduate,” Collins said. “This is a home for alumni to come back to, for prospective students to see themselves at. And it really sets the foundation for that next generation of TD scholars and students. I cannot thank the leadership of TD enough. They know I’ve pushed them for the last six years. And here we are.”

Said President Parlange: “We are very proud of Talent Development. After 50 years in existence, the TD scholars finally have a dedicated house. It’s at this house where you will certainly find the tools and the resources one needs to succeed. You’ll find leadership and development opportunities. And, of course, a place where we can learn about the history of Talent Development and have opportunities to participate in advocacy and social change. But I think what’s more important is that here you will find a home.”

The Achievement House will start in the spring semester with six residents and a resident assistant, who is also a TD scholar, but has the capacity for 35 scholars. To qualify to live in the house, students must meet academic requirements, including maintaining a 3.3 grade-point average.

The ribbon cutting was actually the second celebration for the TD House. Eight scholars first moved into the house in October, when new residents and TD advisers and administrators held a small welcoming party, said Armando Garcia, of Providence, a junior human development and family science major, and resident assistant for the house.

The house, Garcia said, will provide a hub for not only the residents but for the 1,200 TD scholars across campus, about half of whom live on campus.

“We all come from the same background. Most of us are first-generation students and come from low-income backgrounds. We’re all from Rhode Island. So, this makes a second home away from home,” said Garcia. “We’re a strong community and we all have each other’s back. Having that community and having a house we can call a second home, I feel makes our connection even stronger.”

“The Achievement House will expand how Talent Development works with its scholars to keep them fully engaged and successful,” said Edward Givens, Talent Development’s assistant director of campus Life. “Right now, TD scholars can select their roommate and where they want to reside. [But] that’s spread all over campus. Here, it’s just Talent Development students. It’s an opportunity to build a community within a community.”

Built in 1935, the house at 22 Upper College Road was originally the home of the Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity. The building eventually became home to the Women’s Center and served as a residential option for students who identified as women. The house was closed as a residential facility in spring 2020 because of low demand and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Along with 18 residential rooms, the house provides space for Talent Development that is lacking in Taft Hall, the program’s headquarters. The nearly 11,000-square-foot, three-floor Achievement House includes several common areas where students can study or gather, a small kitchen for community meals to augment the University meal plan, a laundry area, recreation/fitness room, and parking lot.

The house also has office space for a TD adviser and one from The College Crusade of Rhode Island. A large common room can be used for organizational meetings, student groups can hold game or movie nights in the recreation area, and space is available for such activities as the summer peer mentoring group, career services and workshops, and staff training, Givens said. 

Currently, the plan is to house returning TD scholars who meet the academic requirements but could expand to include transfer and new students involved in Talent Development, Minor said. Talent Development is working on recruitment efforts to attract more residents to the Achievement House and may add residents this semester, Givens said.

“Talent Development has always been based on family orientation, a community, and a home away from home,” Givens said. “Aside from Taft Hall, some students don’t see that same environment in other settings on campus. We are providing them with an opportunity which is something they can call their own.”

About Talent Development

Talent Development was established in 1968 as a special admission program for Rhode Island students of color and those from disadvantaged backgrounds. It has grown from 13 scholars in 1968 to more than 1,200 today, with more than 4,000 alumni. The program provides academic and financial support to help students succeed, including an intensive summer program to introduce first-year students to college life, along with providing advisers and mentors throughout their college career.