September 12, 2025
The Tuskegee grad reps for her alma mater in new online campaign
Olandria Carthen was thrust into the spotlight after she appeared on Season 7 of the Netflix Series Love Island USA. Now she is shining the light on her alma mater, Tuskegee University, in her latest partnership with Microsoft.
The Decatur, Alabama, native teamed up with Microsoft to showcase Copilot, the tech giant’s AI-powered conversational tool that claims to increase productivity and improve workflow by “automating routine tasks and analyzing data,” according to the company’s website.
In a promotional video posted on Instagram, “Bama Barbie” used the tool to ask questions about her alma mater, which revealed information about the school, including its notable alumni and responses from the Copilot, as well as the histories of HBCUs in America.
Carthen said academics weren’t the only reason she chose to attend an HBCU; the reality star said she wanted to be in an environment where she felt seen.
“A lot of people will ask like, ‘Well, why would you choose to go to an HBCU?’” she said in a TikTok Live, ClutchPoints reported.
“I’m like, ‘I have the rest of my life to be a minority. I wanted to see how it felt to be the majority when I walk around and wake up and everybody looks like me, the 27-year-old said.
Carthen, arguably the breakout star of the hit reality series, also landed a partnership with NYX Cosmetics. The brand released the Nicolandria Lip Combo, named after Carthen and her boyfriend Nicolas Vansteenberghe, the “it couple” of season 7.
Carthen says that she hopes to use her platform to empower other Black women, particularly those with darker skin tones.
“Growing up, I didn’t always see women who looked like me being uplifted in mainstream media, especially on shows like this. So to hear young girls say they felt seen because of me? That’s the real win. I’m proud to represent dark-skinned Black women, because we’ve always been beautiful; we just needed the world to catch up,” the star told Ebony Magazine.
Carthen earned a bachelor’s in logistics, materials, and supply chain management from Tuskegee in 2022.
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