Raised in a public housing community in Harlem, New York, Lynnette Omar was motivated by her loving, yet tough upbringing. The daughter of a city transit worker and interior decorator, Lynnette understood the importance of a strong education and excelled academically at a young age. With financial help from A Better Chance—a non-profit organization that provides minority students access to rigorous educational opportunities—she attended The Putney School in Putney, Vermont. Her educational achievements led her to the University of Pennsylvania, where she graduated with a B.A. in philosophy, politics and economics.  With an interest in public health, Lynnette continued her education and obtained an M.A. in public health administration from George Washington University. 

Over a successful 25-year career, Lynnette held several senior positions in public health care management. As director of continuing medical education at the National Medical Association, she lobbied to help minority and underserved communities gain access to health care services. As an executive at Kaiser Permanente, she held several leadership positions overseeing medical operations. In her last role, Lynnette was assistant director of administration for the University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center, where she led a team responsible for managing grants, budgets and strategic planning.

A mother of nine and champion for academic success, Lynnette raised her family to value education. Along with her husband, Alan Omar, she sent all nine of her children to the nation’s best colleges and universities, including the University of Pennsylvania, Morehouse College, Tufts University, The University of North Carolina and Davidson College. When not raising her own children, Lynnette focused on advancing her community. She worked tirelessly with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City school district to close the racial achievement gap that has persisted for decades. With assistance from other community members, Lynnette provided advice to school board members and worked to provide resources for underrepresented minority students. 

Lynnette’s legacy of achievement and commitment to her family and community continue to inspire others.   

The Lynnette Omar Scholarship rewards and recognizes the academic achievements of minority students at Carrboro High School and supports their matriculation to college. By partnering with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City community, we aim to ensure all students have equal access to higher education and advance Lynnette Omar’s mission of helping students achieve their academic goals.

Nassar Omar

Nassar oversees the scholarships selection process, contributions, and fundraising initiatives.

A proud product of the Chapel Hill–Carrboro City Schools, Nassar attended Frank Porter Graham Elementary and Culbreth Middle School before graduating from Carrboro High School in 2011. He earned a B.A. in Business Administration from Morehouse College and an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan.

Today he is a Senior Associate at NAACP Capital in New York, where he is building the firm's investment platform — sourcing and evaluating fund managers and startups across fintech, healthcare, and climate. Over the past decade he has invested and allocated capital at Allocate, Collide Capital, PSP Capital (Penny Pritzker's family office), The Rockefeller Foundation, and GCM Grosvenor, with a focus on backing diverse and emerging managers.

Nassar is the youngest son of Lynnette Omar and founded this scholarship in her honor.

neela mahanty

Neela helps guide the scholarship's strategy, partnerships, and growth.

Neela Mahanty works in oncology commercial strategy at AstraZeneca. A fellow product of the Chapel Hill–Carrboro City Schools, she graduated from Carrboro High School in 2012, earned a B.A. in Biology and Hispanic Studies from the University of Pennsylvania in 2016, and an M.S. in Physiology from North Carolina State University in 2018.

She is a passionate advocate for early-childhood literacy.

Nassar Omar

Nassar oversees the scholarships selection process, contributions, and fundraising initiatives.

A proud product of the Chapel Hill–Carrboro City Schools, Nassar attended Frank Porter Graham Elementary and Culbreth Middle School before graduating from Carrboro High School in 2011. He earned a B.A. in Business Administration from Morehouse College and an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan.

Today he is a Senior Associate at NAACP Capital in New York, where he is building the firm's investment platform — sourcing and evaluating fund managers and startups across fintech, healthcare, and climate. Over the past decade he has invested and allocated capital at Allocate, Collide Capital, PSP Capital (Penny Pritzker's family office), The Rockefeller Foundation, and GCM Grosvenor, with a focus on backing diverse and emerging managers.

Nassar is the youngest son of Lynnette Omar and founded this scholarship in her honor.

Mary Gratch 

Mary Gratch has over 30 years of experience in education and school counseling. She played a critical role in student development at Carrboro High School, where she served as one of the school’s first guidance counselors. Prior to this role, Mary was a guidance counselor at Chapel Hill High School for 15 years. A beloved member of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City community, Mary has helped numerous students navigate the college application process. Currently, she works as an educational consultant and assists students locally and nationally. She holds a B.S. in Child Development and Teaching from Michigan State University and an M.Ed. in School Counseling from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 

Christoph Stutts

Christoph Stutts is an experienced high-school social studies teacher and doctoral student and has worked in public schools for 14 years as a department head, curriculum leader, assistant football coach and mentor to teachers. He is a National Board Certified Teacher, a proponent of public education as a vehicle for social justice and has worked tirelessly to bring a rigorous and accessible curriculum to standard, honors and AP level coursework. As a Ph.D. student in UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Education, he connects his classroom experience to education research and teacher education, focusing specifically on teacher wellbeing and self care. Christoph has a B.A. in history from Bates College and an M.A. in secondary education and teaching from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.