Spelman College students won the $1 million grand prize during the third annual Goldman Sachs Market Madness competition on April 24, 2023. The winning team included students Victoria Woodward, Princess Dandoo, Gabrielle Smith, Havelin Autry, and Madison Porter. Spelman students also won first place during the inaugural competition in 2021 and won second place in 2022.
Team member Princess Dandoo, C’2025, described securing a victory for Spelman as the epitome of being "undaunted by the fight." She explained that the team faced a variety of challenges, from reshaping their initial ideation to changing their presentation days before the big day. Despite these obstacles, the team emerged victorious. Spelman College President Helene D. Gayle, M.D., MPH, lauded the team's exceptional achievement.
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Congratulations to our Spelman scholars! This victory is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our students, and the support they receive from our faculty and staff. Academic excellence, cultural enrichment, and a strong sisterhood, against the backdrop of a well-rounded liberal arts education continues to provide Spelman students with the fortitude and resources they need to succeed and, in this case, score a big win!” she said.
The competition marked the culmination of the Market Madness: HBCU Possibilities Program. The program offers a comprehensive curriculum for students that spans an entire semester, featuring a crash course on fundamental concepts and career paths in finance, exclusive access to senior executives at the firm, numerous opportunities for networking and mentorship, a $10,000 financial stipend, and the exciting chance to compete in the prestigious Market Madness competition. “The Goldman Sachs Market Madness HBCU Possibilities Program has contributed to my future career endeavors in more ways than one. This program has allowed me into an extremely polarizing space for Black women and I can't wait to hold the door open for others,” said team member Victoria Woodward, C’2025. The Market Madness: HBCU Possibilities Program is a core component of Goldman Sachs’ $25 million, five-year commitment to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). In 2023, Goldman Sachs expanded the program to include 150 students from 12 HBCUs, selected from more than 400 eligible applications. Students were split into 31 teams and, throughout the semester, conducted company research and proposed a strategic business solution for featured client, L’Oreal.
Other participating schools included:
• Alcorn State University
• Delaware State University
• Fisk University
• Florida A&M University
• Hampton University
• Howard University
• Morehouse College
• Morgan State University
• North Carolina A&T State University
• Prairie View A&M University
• Texas Southern University
Media Contacts:
Lydia Sermons, 470.898.6451, lydiasermons@spelman.edu
Denise Ward, 770.862.4028, deniseward@spelman.edu
About Spelman College
Founded in 1881, Spelman College is a leading liberal arts college widely recognized as the global leader in the education of women of African descent. Located in Atlanta, the College’s picturesque campus is home to 2,100 students. Spelman is the country's leading producer of Black women who complete Ph.D.s in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The College’s status is confirmed by the U.S. News & World Report, which ranked Spelman No. 51 among all liberal arts colleges, No. 19 for undergraduate teaching, No. 5 for social mobility among liberal arts colleges, and No. 1 for the 16th year among historically Black colleges and universities. The Wall Street Journal has ranked the College No. 3, nationally, in terms of student satisfaction. Recent initiatives include a designation by the Department of Defense as a Center of Excellence for Minority Women in STEM, a Gender and Sexuality Studies Institute, the first endowed queer studies chair at an HBCU, and a program to increase the number of Black women Ph.D.s in economics. New majors have been added, including documentary filmmaking and photography, and collaborations have been established with MIT’s Media Lab, the Broad Institute and the Army Research Lab for artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Outstanding alumnae include Children’s Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman, Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Rosalind Brewer, political leader Stacey Abrams, former Acting Surgeon General and Spelman’s first alumna president Audrey Forbes Manley, actress and producer Latanya Richardson Jackson, global bioinformatics geneticist Janina Jeff and authors Pearl Cleage and Tayari Jones. To learn more, please visit spelman.edu and @spelmancollege on social media.