LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- The Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) at Rider University has been selected as one of 76 organizations nationwide to receive a grant from the Volunteer Action Fund of the American Express Foundation.

Established in April, 1994, the fund enables grants to be awarded to eligible programs in which U.S. employees of American Express volunteer on a regular basis.

American Express' volunteer connection to Rider is Whitney Bullock, vice president of federal tax audits. A 1970 Rider graduate, Bullock is a member of the EOP Community Advisory Board and has spoken at various EOP events and conducted workshops for students. He is a resident of Langhorne, PA.

The grant from American Express enabled eleven Rider EOP students to attend the recent National Black Student Leadership Conference in Richmond, VA. The 13th-annual conference, sponsored by the Stuart Educational Leadership Group and designed to equip students with the tools needed for effective and meaningful leadership, attracted more than 800 students from around the country. This year's conference theme was "Sharing Power, Place, and Position in a New Millennium."

The students who participated in the conference are (with hometown, class year, and major):

American Express is a diversified travel and financial services company. Founded in 1850, it is a leader in charge cards, travelers checks, travel, financial planning, and international banking.

The Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) at Rider University is a state program that helps low-income residents attend college. The program provides educational opportunity for students who may normally be denied an education due to academic preparation, financial resources, environmental circumstances, or lack of role models to aspire to higher educational goals. The EOP provides academic support with financial aid assistance. Students are admitted into the EOP when they have demonstrated academic readiness and potential, determination, a genuine desire to learn, and a need for financial assistance.

Rider University is an independent, coeducational, nonsectarian institution with a 353-acre main campus in Lawrenceville, New Jersey and a 23-acre campus in Princeton, New Jersey. The University offers 58 undergraduate programs and 17 graduate programs in the Colleges of Business Administration; Liberal Arts, Education, and Sciences; Continuing Studies; and Westminster Choir College. Ninety-three percent of the faculty hold doctoral or other appropriate advanced degrees. U.S. News and World Report has again ranked Rider in the top tier of northern universities based on the quality of its programs.