The Allegacy Financial Center for Leadership and Character is excited to welcome its third cohort of AFCLC scholars. This distinguished group of six graduate students, representing Master of Science in Accountancy, Master of Science in Business Analytics and Master of Science in Management programs, will spend the year growing as leaders of character through enrichment sessions, one-on-one coaching and the completion of a year-long leadership project benefiting a local organization.
Looking ahead Executive Director Pat Sweeney says, “This talented and motivated group of scholars will use the organization consulting project as a laboratory to explore building effective teams, creating and adjusting work processes, effectively dealing with different personalities and expertise, and experimenting with different leadership styles to effectively influence peers.”
Participating students were selected based on their proven desire to develop as a business leader of character, their leadership experiences, passion for community engagement and their global perspective. Sweeney says, “Enhancing leader identity and refining leadership skills are two main goals of the program.”
The AFCLC Executive in Residence and Executive Affiliates will offer their time and expertise to the students throughout the year: retired President and CEO of ArbiterSports Jeff Triplette, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Elias Partners Adam Holtzschue, retired Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer for Reynolds American, Inc Ann Johnston, retired CEO and President of Allegacy Financial Cathy Pace, former Wake Forest Head Football Coach Dave Clawson, and retired Executive Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Greif Inc. Peter Watson.
The year-long program will officially kick off with an orientation session and team building activities at Graylyn Estate on September 18.
Get to Know the 2026/2027 AFCLC Scholars:
Caroline Wood, MSA
Caroline graduated from Wake Forest University in May of 2026 with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. Making multiple appearances on the Dean List, Caroline was also the recipient of the Paula S. Henson Scholarship. During her time at WFU, Caroline was a member of Women in Economics, Management Consulting Club and Management Consulting Club and Chi Omega Fraternity.
TJ Ward, MSA
TJ graduated in May 2026 with a Bachelor of Science in Business and Enterprise Management and a minor in Computer Science from Wake Forest University. TJ was a research member of the Sports Analytics Club and a part of Wake N’ Shake Hospitality. He was also a part of the Marketing and Advertising Club, Wake Radio Club and Satire Club.
Ming Chen, MSBA
Ming graduated from National Taiwan University with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. After graduation, Ming was the Head Coach of the men’s basketball team and founder and content creator of DrayDrayBear (YouTube Channel) which has amassed 200K+ subscribers and 32.7M+ lifetime views.
Noah Sanders, MSBA
Noah graduated from NCA&T with a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Environmental Systems in Agricultural Business and Food Industry Management. He was also the quarterback of the school’s Division I football team and named a Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Commissioner’s Academic High Honors Student Athlete.
Allie Schmidt, MSM
Allie graduated from Wake Forest University in May of 2026 with Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Minors in Entrepreneurship and French. Allie was a member of the school’s Division I women’s soccer team and a member of the team’s leadership council. Allie was also a Wake Forest University President’s Aide and was chosen to attend the United States Naval Academy Leadership Conference – an AFCLC sponsored initiative.
Tristan Slates, MSM
Tristan graduated from University of North Carolina Chapel Hill with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Human and Organizational Leadership Development and Communication. During his time at UNC, Tristan served as a graduation marshall, member of the student advisory council and a reporter for the Daily Tarheel.