A path into computer science.
The Merline Saintil ACS Legacy Scholarship at Carnegie Mellon supports undergraduate School of Computer Science students who need financial assistance.
Impact
A door opened.
Then a door held open.
The people who opened doors for Merline shaped what she chose to do next.
Received sponsorship. Practiced sponsorship.
Put a name in the room.
Black Women on Boards, co-founded with Robin Washington in 2020, brings accomplished women into networks where board opportunities are discussed and names are put forward.
It began with 18 Black women on a Zoom call. Relationships, preparation and introductions became a way to move from recognizing a gap to changing who gets considered.
Read Merline’s account of the beginning
Opening doors is practical work
Introductions.
Preparation.
Putting names forward.
Sponsorship means helping an accomplished person become visible to someone making a decision. Merline’s work connects that individual responsibility to a community with shared ambition.
Black Women on BoardsExecutive producer · OnBoard
Make the story visible.
OnBoard traces Black women’s journey into corporate boardrooms. Merline’s work as an executive producer carries the commitment to access into film.
The documentary premiered at Tribeca in 2023. Its preview is available separately from the full film.
Watch the film preview
Distinct ways to widen opportunity
Preparation for the next leadership role.
BWOB Rising Foundation supports professional development, mentoring and connections for mid-career Black women advancing toward executive leadership.
Explore BWOB’s workIn Merline’s words
Merline Saintil and Jasmine Aikey Scholarship Fund
Jasmine Aikey, and I are two Stanford alumnae whose paths intersected on The Farm at a pivotal moment for us both. Jasmine arrived at Stanford in 2022, just after her 17th birthday. In August 2025, as she prepared for her final season in women’s soccer, I completed the Stanford GSB Executive Program. Four months later, she graduated with a degree in computer science and a 3.97 GPA.
Jasmine was named the 2025–26 Division I Overall Academic All-American® of the Year, the top academic honor among Division I student-athletes. She is only the third Stanford student-athlete to receive it, joining Tommy Vardell and Katie Ledecky. She also won the MAC Hermann Trophy and was named the Division I women’s soccer Academic All-America® Team Member of the Year. Only one other player, Christine Sinclair, has won both soccer honors in the same season. Jasmine has since signed with Denver Summit FC in the NWSL.
As her mother, I’m immensely proud of those achievements, but I’m proudest of the person she is. I’m grateful to the coaches, teammates, professors, and Stanford community who helped her thrive in the classroom and on the field. The story I hope the magazine might explore is the connection between our experiences: a mother continuing her education in executive leadership while breaking barriers of her own, a daughter pursuing computer science and elite sport, and a shared desire to open doors for the students who come next.
That desire led us to establish the Merline Saintil and Jasmine Aikey Scholarship Fund. It supports Stanford undergraduates with financial need, with preference for students pursuing STEM and, secondarily, for student-athletes who demonstrate academic achievement and leadership.