For one Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) scholar attending the 2025 Leadership Institute, the road to her aspirations was anything but a straight path.
Kimi-Lee Knight, a senior applied mathematics major at the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI), was previously more recognized for her abilities in music and writing than math. That didn’t stop Knight from earning an associate degree in the subject, however.
“Though I dreamed of going to university, family finances made that impossible at the time,” Knight said.
She started working at a small media company and then watched as it grew into a multinational political marketing firm.
“I grew too – taking on roles and training in project management, copywriting, analytics and strategy,” Knight said.
With an expanding set of skills and the onset of the pandemic in 2020, founded a content consultancy and helped build one of the region’s first digital political platforms.
“In small communities like ours, policy is personal, and I saw firsthand the need for stronger government communication, clearer data practices and more thoughtful decision-making,” she said. “I wanted to turn whispered voices into structured information that could guide policy.”
The desire to harness those whispers led her to UVI, where she studies statistics, data science and computing.
“I’m learning how to give voice to persons by representing them through data, while respecting their privacy,” Knight said. “It’s a perfect blend of my creative talents, love of psychology and analytical drive.”
Knight said Leadership Institute appealed to her because she follows the work of several of TMCF’s corporate partners and wanted a chance to connect with them.
“I also enjoy sharing energy and ideas with other brilliant and focused persons,” Knight said. “I made a pact with myself to apply to and explore every opportunity I could while at university. This was one I couldn’t miss.”
She said she’s truly grateful to TMCF for providing an opportunity to cross paths with other ambitious students on their way to success.
She said she’s most looking forward to the speed branding breakout sessions, giving her a chance to apply her skills in real-world business cases while receiving feedback from top-tier professionals.
“I love getting insight into how others think through challenges,” Knight said.
After graduation in December, Knight said she’ll apply to graduate programs in social data science, industrial engineering or human factors engineering.
“I’m always looking for bigger problems to solve – whether through entrepreneurship or within a company doing meaningful work,” she said. “I aim to grow as a data scientist, where I can make informed decisions and help build systems that truly serve people.”
