Voorhees students complete Black AIDS Institute internship on HIV awareness

Voorhees University’s Jaydon Robinson and Dahjmere Reddick have finished a six-week paid virtual internship with the Black AIDS Institute, giving the two student health ambassadors practical training in HIV awareness, prevention and public-health outreach tied to Black communities.

The internship ran from March through May 2026 and was made possible through a partnership with Special Health Resources. Voorhees said both students are members of its HBCU Health Initiative, placing the experience inside a broader campus effort to connect student leadership with health education, wellness advocacy and service work.

That matters in Bamberg County, where small institutions often carry outsized weight in workforce development. Voorhees launched its Student Health Ambassador Program on Feb. 21, 2024, with a $500,000 grant from the Centers for Rural and Primary Health. The original five-student cohort, which included Samiya Stuart, Trevornique Williams, Matthew Donaldson, Antonio Taylor and Blaante Bartlett, was built around a five-part Tiger I.M.P.A.C.T. framework that emphasizes Investment, Mental Wellness, Physical Wellness, Advocacy, Chronic Disease and Technology.

Robinson and Reddick’s internship adds another layer to that pipeline. Voorhees has already tied the ambassador program to concrete campus and community roles, including peer education, wellness advocacy, referrals and outreach. The university also said both students earned Community Health Worker certification in September 2025, and that 11 student health ambassadors later received a combined $22,500 in scholarships in February 2026.

The local public-health stakes are clear. Bamberg County has about 13,042 residents and is described in one county health profile as having no hospitals, along with shortage designations for primary care, mental health and dental care. South Carolina public-health officials have also pointed to stigma, transportation, poverty and limited access to health care as barriers to HIV testing and care across the state.

The Black AIDS Institute says its mission is to end HIV through prevention, HIV testing, education and equity for Black communities, and it is marking 25 years of service. Its own figures, along with KFF data, show why that work remains urgent: about 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV, about 40% are Black, and Black people accounted for 38% of new HIV diagnoses while making up about 12% of the population.

Voorhees is also part of a Black AIDS Institute BHIVE consortium with Jarvis Christian University, Johnson C. Smith University and LeMoyne-Owen College, extending that training model across HBCU campuses. For Bamberg County, the real test now is whether Robinson and Reddick use that experience to strengthen peer outreach, testing awareness and referral pathways through Voorhees, turning a six-week internship into a longer public-health return for the county.