Fraternity alums start scholarship for SEMO international students

A new scholarship for international students at Southeast Missouri State University has been endowed by several alumni of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity chapter at Southeast.

The Lambda Chi Alpha Alumni Endowed Scholarship for SEMO International Students was established with funding from fraternity alumnus Joshua Fonseca of Naples, Florida, and other Lambda Chi alumni. The scholarship, according to the fraternity, was created "to acknowledge the university's commitment to rich and meaningful experiences for international students, and is named after Lambda Chi Alpha to celebrate Fonseca's transformative experience as a member of the fraternity and the organization's commitment to diversity."

The renewable scholarship is available to any undergraduate international student enrolled at Southeast with a grade-point average of 3.0 or higher. First preference will go to students who demonstrate exceptional campus and/or community involvement. Scholarship recipients will be chosen by representatives from the university's Office of International Education and Services, the university's foundation, and the Lambda Chi Alpha chapter at Southeast.

Fonseca was born in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and was raised in Mumbai, India. He enrolled at Southeast in 1999 to study computer science and in 2000 joined the Lambda Chi Alpha chapter where he was elected to serve as alumni relations officer.

He also served on the fraternity's executive committee and ritual team. While he was an active member, the fraternity earned its first Grand High Alpha Award, the highest honor bestowed by the international fraternity's headquarters.

While at Southeast, Fonseca served as vice president and president of the Indian Subcontinent Student Association and was active in Catholic Campus Ministry's Newman Center. He had student jobs at the university's Recreation Center and the Southeast Information Technology Department before graduating in 2003.

Following graduation, Fonseca was hired as an applications developer by Element 74 in Cape Girardeau and in 2014 he accepted a position as the director of software development for a health care technology startup in Naples. He is currently employed by a health care company based in New Jersey.

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