'Midnight Basketball' Scholarship Winners Put Money Towards Internships, Education

NEW ORLEANS – On Saturday, Dec. 16, 2017, Mayor Mitch Landrieu and the National Basketball Players Association Foundation (NBPA Foundation) presented the second round of Midnight Basketball scholarships to five Season 16 participants at the final game of the season.

Midnight Basketball is a part of Mayor Landrieu’s comprehensive Murder Reduction Strategy, NOLA FOR LIFE, and reaches young men who may be at risk of being impacted by violent crime in the city.

Season 16 Midnight Basketball Scholarship recipients include Arman Gallaspy, Christell Gibson, John Moran, Kayla Williams and Dedrick Humble.

- Sponsors -

Gallaspy will use his scholarship to acquire his Information Technology and Entrepreneurship credentials and will intern with the dessert shop, SNOLA.

Gibson will use his scholarship to earn his healthcare credentials and will intern with the LA SPCA.

Moran will use his scholarship to acquire his entrepreneurship credentials and will intern with Nu Republic, a tax preparation agency. Williams will use her scholarship to earn her healthcare credentials and will intern with the Common Ground Health Clinic.

- Partner Content -

Entergy’s Energy Smart Program Brings Cost Conscious Innovation to New Orleans

Offering comprehensive energy efficiency at no cost to the consumer, Entergy’s Energy Smart program incentivizes Entergy New Orleans customers to perform energy-saving upgrades in...

Humble will use his scholarship toward earning entrepreneurship training and will intern with Nu Republic, a tax preparation agency.

Last season’s scholarship recipients included Cornell Parquet, Narvin Reed and Trenton Anderson.

Parquet used his scholarship funds to help pay for his tuition at Southern University of New Orleans and interned with Elevate Next, learning sports training and educational strategies.

- Sponsors -

Reed applied his scholarship toward acquiring his Information Technology credentials and interned with the City of New Orleans’ Office of Information Technology and Innovation.

Anderson put his scholarship toward his tuition at the University of New Orleans and interned with ResCare in the Human Resources Department.

National Basketball Players Association Foundation Executive Director Sherrie Deans said, “We continue to be impressed by the spirit and determination of Midnight Basketball scholarship recipients. NBA players, who we represent in this work, know the importance of hard work and persistence in achieving your goals.  And this season’s scholarship recipients – like the recipients in the last season – are great examples of this. We value our relationship with Midnight Basketball, and we are proud to represent our players in supporting all of the participants in this unique program.”

The City of New Orleans along with the New Orleans Pelicans, Domino’s Pizza, PlayNOLA and DJ Wild Wayne, hosted the sixteenth season of NOLA FOR LIFE Midnight Basketball at Rosenwald Recreation Center (1120 S. Broad St.). Throughout the season, players were able to sign up for scholarship opportunities from the NBPA Foundation.

Since its launch in January 2012, Midnight Basketball has offered over 13,000 participants access to jobs, job training, education and other resources.  

During the 2017 NBA All-Star Weekend, the NBPA Foundation made a scholarship commitment to Midnight Basketball of $50,000 per year for the next three years. The NBPA Foundation’s commitment will continue to provide select Midnight Basketball participants the opportunity for education and training programs in New Orleans.

For more information about the scholarship program, click here.

Digital Sponsors / Become a Sponsor

Follow the issues, companies and people that matter most to business in New Orleans.

Email Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter