A Life Given, A Life Given Back: Community Comes Full Circle for Dr. Karmalita Contee

Every time Dr. Karmalita Contee, Bowie State’s director of private scholarships and grants walks across campus, she carries with her generations of family history, a career shaped by service and gratitude for the second chance she’s been given.

A proud BSU alumna, Contee’s life story contains many full circle moments. Some are purposeful and intentional, while others are happy coincidences.

“My connection to Bowie State began long before I pursued a graduate degree here. Both my parents graduated from BSU in the 1940s and hoped I would follow in their footsteps. But I wanted a bit more distance from home while remaining within the HBCU community. I chose the University of Maryland Eastern Shore for my undergraduate studies.”

After graduation, Contee spent 32 years in corporate America, moving across departments. Her philosophy was simple: keep learning along the way. When she decided to earn her master’s degree in public administration, BSU was the natural choice.

“Not only was it my family history, but BSU allowed me to balance work, school and home seamlessly.”

Her final role, at the Verizon Foundation, was in corporate philanthropy, an experience that would prove essential to her next career chapter.

“It introduced me to something I didn't know existed. The Verizon Foundation provides educational grants, and I couldn’t have imagined that the position was preparing me to come back to BSU.”

After accepting a buyout, Contee planned to take time to decide what came next. Instead, fate intervened at a family celebration she organized at BSU. While she managed a surprise wedding vow renewal for several dozen guests on campus, newly named BSU President Aminta Breaux arrived at the party, thinking it was a donor event. Despite the miscommunication, President Breaux noticed Contee’s leadership and energy and encouraged her to consider joining the university.

“This literally occurred the day I took the Verizon buyout.”

Eighteen days after retiring, Contee began her next chapter.

Using her Verizon Foundation experience, Contee noticed that scholarships created through the Division of Philanthropic Engagement weren’t consistently matched with students who met donor criteria. She proposed the role of director of private scholarships and grants in the Division of Enrollment Management & Student Affairs.

Today she oversees the lifecycle of donor-funded awards, working to ensure fairness and meaningful connections between donors and recipients. She emphasizes that BSU scholarships are more than financial support.

“Every donor has a story and values they like to see reflected in recipients. We connect BSU students to scholarships meaningfully, so they understand it's about building legacies in areas such as education or nursing.”

Her work with students involves helping them grow into confident young professionals. She guides them on everything from navigating formal dining situations to entering a room with confidence, skills she believes open doors as powerfully as financial support.

“I was fortunate. My mother sent me to etiquette training where I learned how to walk into a room and shake hands firmly. Every child of color does not have that opportunity.”

Many students stay connected to Contee long after graduation, a cycle of community she works hard to build.

Even as she poured herself into supporting students, Contee was fighting another battle. In her early 30s, kidney damage caused by medication slowly worsened over decades. By the 2020 pandemic, she was being evaluated for the transplant list.

“Dialysis became my nightly routine while I continued working. At one point, I could barely walk because I was so exhausted. My life became work, dialysis and sleep.”

She waited five years, and after some false hopes, Contee received her gift of life: a donor kidney in August 2024. Recovery was long and often exhausting, but her Bowie State family, hospital team, relatives and friends never stopped supporting her. She returned to campus in January 2025, using a walker but determined to resume her work.

Every day, she carries forward the lesson that guides her work: community sustains us. At Bowie State, Dr. Karmalita Contee is building one.