Modeling Mentorship

Published Date September 17, 2024
News Type Public Address

(Left to right) Nila Whitfield enjoys some time with spring 2022 WAIP student Lauren Weingarth and Emily Henson, who Whitfield supported in the fall 2021 WAIP program.

By Joan Slattery Wall

Nila Whitfield says Ohio State students she’s supported over the years fill her entire Rolodex — which helps her keep in touch with them and foster their connections with professionals and each other.

She not only provides funding for scholarships for students in the John Glenn College of Public Affairs Washington Academic Internship Program (WAIP) and the Fisher College of Business, but she’s dedicated to meeting them; her mentorship has bloomed into lifelong friendships with many.

Among them is Emily Henson, one of 14 WAIP students Whitfield has assisted through her fund, which defrays Washington, D.C., housing costs that can be a barrier to undergraduates who want to participate in the program. In 2023, Henson graduated with bachelor’s degrees in public health, public affairs and Spanish linguistics. She is currently on track to complete her master’s degree in international relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in 2025, specializing in security, strategy and statecraft and Asia affairs.

Emily Henson, left, and Nila Whitfield pose for a photo at an Ohio State event in 2022.

“I set an aspiration in WAIP that I was going to be in foreign diplomacy,” said Henson, who is a consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton. “My goal is to pivot some of the learnings of my graduate program so my next jump is toward that goal of being diplomat or serving in a U.S. consulate overseas.”

“I was blown sideways,” Whitfield said of her first impressions of Henson. “Like Emily, I was a very active student. I was a student leader at Ohio State and going to Franklin University at night while working full time. I was involved in student organizations at both places.”

“Any of the students I interact with are ingrained in my life,” Whitfield said. “I see a lot of myself in them.”

The connection also was strong for Henson, whose mother is involved with philanthropic efforts and supports students at Purdue University. 

“I heard Nila’s story and work with students, and it felt close to home,” Henson said.

Now retired, Whitfield had a career at Ohio State for more than 30 years as the first full-time director of the internship and co-op program at Fisher and as director of major gifts for the Midwest region in University Advancement.

“I loved working with students, raising money and the people I met. I really didn’t know if I was going to be able to retire. I didn’t know if I was going to be able to jump out of that boat,” said Whitfield. “I always knew as I called on people who were major donors that I wanted to be a major donor. That was on my bucket list for a long time. I give on an annual basis to the Glenn College and Fisher, and both of them are in my will.”

To further her means of supporting students, she has dedicated an estate gift toward a pending endowment, the Professor Herb Asher Scholarship Fund for the Washington Academic Internship Program.

Henson says that as one of six children, she does everything she can to offset her college costs through merit or scholarship. 

“The financial support from Nila was instrumental in getting me to D.C. for WAIP and covering the cost, but equally, the mentorship piece has been valuable. She has been another person in my corner for advice or counsel,” Henson said. “She has just really been kind throughout the process and very invested in my journey.”

Whitfield has always enjoyed working with students. 

“I feel the relationship I have with the Glenn College and the Fisher Honors Cohort program keeps me young and keeps me fresh from the current student perspective,” Whitfield said. “As an older person, I think that’s a real gift to me to have a chance to learn from them.”

Setting the Standard to Pay It Forward

In turn, students witness Whitfield’s example of philanthropy.

As a two-time cancer survivor, Nila has learned the value of nutrition and lifestyle and uses that knowledge to help educate others about fruits and vegetables through a home-based business. She volunteers at the Stefanie Spielman Comprehensive Breast Center in radiation oncology and at Hope’s Boutique. In addition, she serves on The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute Patient Family Advisory Committee. 

An active donor at Worthington Resource Pantry, she previously volunteered with the Make-A-Wish Foundation and A Kid Again and tutored local school children.

Nila Whitfield, center, saved this snapshot from the time she met NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw, left, with Sen. John Glenn in 2006 at the then-Glenn Institute before it became the Glenn College.

Her love of children, in fact, ties to a fond memory she has of an interaction with Sen. John Glenn. During a donor visit with University Advancement, she went with Glenn to a Chicago elementary school. Student representatives from each grade asked Glenn about his career, but as he was leaving, one little boy who had missed out on the opportunity was crying in the hallway.

Although he was leaving to catch a flight, Glenn took a moment to stop and talk to the child.

“The whole experience just touched my heartstrings,” said Whitfield, who feels strongly about supporting the next generation and encouraging them to pay forward.

“I like to tell these college students, ‘Somebody’s supporting you, whether it’s your family or scholarships. Remember to give back. Don’t forget where you came from,’” Whitfield said.

If you would like to support the Whitfield/WAIP Fund, which provides funding for housing for the Glenn College Washington Academic Internship Program, or learn more about estate gifts, contact Stephanie Mohr, senior director of development.

“I’m still using my tentacles to help in all different kinds of ways,” said Whitfield, who builds connections for and among the students she supports. “I’m a quintessential networker. I try to help students understand the importance of networking. I try to impress on them how important that is to their careers.” 
 

Henson now continues to mentor and support former and current WAIP students.

“I totally believe in the pay-it-forward mentality,” Henson said. “It sets a chain reaction of kindness toward people.”

For current WAIP students, she organizes tours at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies — with an opportunity to have their admission fees waived. 

“I try to make time, especially for students, because that matters to me. I think the power of giving back and the power of collective kindness is something Nila tries to cultivate through these programs, so I try to do the same,” Henson said. “She’s invested a lot of time into me, so I continue to invest time into this program and to other students.”

Read the latest edition of Public Address, the Glenn College magazine.