Georgia Tech EXCEL Student Receives New Bike From Community and Georgia Tech Police Department

On Sunday, September 15, someone stole Marquavious Barnes’ bicycle. He received it from his uncle when he was just eight years old, two years after being hit by a car, which resulted in a traumatic brain injury. As a 2^nd year student enrolled in the EXCEL program at Georgia Tech, he depended on his bike to get him to and from classes and his internship at Barnes and Noble.

Marquavious, or Qua as he’s called, came to the EXCEL program by attending an info session with his mentor, Georgia Simpson, of Bogart, Georgia who had worked for years to get him into a program for post-secondary job preparation.

When the bike went missing, his mother, in partnership with Captain Carla Cook and the Georgia Tech Police Department (GTPD), launched a GoFundMe campaign to replace the bike, and local media outlets covered the story.  Once the story broke, GTPD received phone calls and emails from the community, and the campaign raised more than $3,000, more than enough to buy Qua a new bike.

Before the GTPD could purchase one for him, a new one appeared at the GTPD headquarters, purchased by an anonymous donor. The GTPD assembled the bike and along with faculty and staff, presented it to Qua at the Scheller College of Business Atrium on Friday, September 20.

For complete coverage, see “Georgia Tech Student Gets New Specialized Bike after Other Stolen” from Fox5 news. 

The EXCEL (Expanding Career, Education, and Leadership for Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities) program is a four-year program offering students with disabilities the opportunity to attend college courses and develop social skills to prepare them for independent living.  The program is part of Scheller College’s Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ILE).