Neal-Marshall Alumni Club to honor IU alumni for service, leadership

The Neal-Marshall Alumni Club will honor two Indiana University alumni at its annual Jazz Brunch on July 11. Both share a strong spirit of service and a deep commitment to helping future generations of IU students. Ellise Antoinette Smith, MS‘19, will receive the Rising Star Award, and Cynthia Spencer, BSW ‘14, MSW ‘16, will receive the Alumni Achievement Award.

Both women credit their experiences at IU with inspiring their professional journeys and continued involvement with their alma mater.

Rising Star Award: Ellise Antoinette Smith

When Smith was growing up in Detroit, her grandparents encouraged her to do something no one else in her family had done before: pursue a college education. It was something she wasn’t sure was possible after graduating high school with a 1.82 GPA.

“College was my out of generational poverty,” said Smith. “I’m the first in my family to receive a baccalaureate, to be in a master's program and also now the Ph.D. program.”

She came to IU Bloomington in 2016 to pursue a master’s in higher education and student affairs and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Urban Education Studies at IU Indianapolis — a degree she promised her late grandfather she would complete. Smith's desire to work in education is driven by her own experiences of being excluded from certain spaces and opportunities. Rather than fighting the systems she felt left out of, she wants to enact positive change by becoming part of them.

“Nobody in my family who looked like me or shared my circumstances came to an institution like this,” Smith said. “But, now, there’s no excuse in my opinion for my nieces and nephews or my friends’ children to say, ‘Well I’ve never seen it before.’”

Helping others feel seen and valued also drives Smith to stay engaged with IU, where she’s passionate about working with other first-generation students. Her leadership and service embody the Rising Star Award she will receive in July, which honors emerging professionals who have demonstrated exceptional early-career achievements and deep community commitment.

Smith has also been recognized with the 2025 IU Indianapolis 56th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Persistent Pathfinder of Justice Award, the 2025 Women’s History Month Award and the 2026 American Council on Education Women’s Network Indiana Distinguished Woman Leader Award.

Alumni Achievement Award: Cynthia Spencer

Like Smith, Spencer was the first in her family to attend and graduate from college.

Her journey started at Ivy Tech, and she had no plans to continue her education after receiving her associate degree — until she learned about scholarships that would make doing so more attainable. With additional support, Spencer enrolled at IU Northwest and completed her bachelor's and master's degrees in social work.

Spencer is now a licensed social worker who owns her own business: Better Tomorrow Counseling LLC. She said her IU education helped stop what she calls a “generational curse.”

“My mom used to always tell me she didn’t get a chance to go to school,” Spencer said. “She was born in 1934, and if it rained, they had to work out in the field to help support their families. So, her highest grade level was the 4^th grade. Every time I get any award or I do anything to help anybody, I always think about my mom.”

She’ll be thinking about her mom when she accepts the Alumni Achievement Award, which recognizes alumni for their lifetime accomplishments across their careers, leadership roles and community service. Spencer continues to serve IU by mentoring current social work students and has been recognized with IU Northwest’s Outstanding Practicum Instructor Award.

She believes giving back to IU as an alum is imperative.

“Don’t just get the degree and leave,” Spencer said. “Continue to advocate, continue to educate, become involved with whatever profession you graduated from. The more you give back, the more opportunities will come to you.”