Guilford County senior wins Kay Hagan scholarship, headed to N.C. A&T

A Guilford County senior headed to North Carolina A&T State University has won a scholarship that links academic success to public service, placing her on a path local leaders have long tried to widen for girls and young women.

Jaelle Garvin, a graduating senior, received the Kay Hagan Memorial Scholarship, an award created by Women to Women through the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro. The scholarship is reserved for a graduating female high school senior who shares Kay Hagan’s commitment to community, civic leadership and helping others make a difference in the world, while also showing outstanding academic achievement.

That mix matters in Greensboro and across Guilford County, where college costs can shape whether a student enrolls, how much debt she takes on and how quickly she can begin building a career. For Garvin, the scholarship does more than help pay tuition. It signals that her school record and service mindset already match the kind of leadership pipeline local institutions want to strengthen.

The award also ties Garvin to N.C. A&T, one of Greensboro’s most influential campuses and a major destination for local talent. Founded in 1891, the university reported enrollment of 14,311 in fall 2024, underscoring the scale of its draw. For a Guilford County student, heading there places her within a regional network that has long connected education, civic leadership and public-serving careers.

The scholarship carries the name of Kay Hagan, who served in the U.S. Senate from 2009 to 2015 after a decade in the North Carolina Senate. Hagan died on October 28, 2019, at age 66. Her daughter, Carrie Hagan Stewart, has said her mother championed women and girls throughout her life, especially in education. That legacy gives the scholarship a meaning that reaches beyond one student and one year.

Women to Women says the first Senator Kay Hagan Memorial Scholarship was awarded in 2023. The group has also expanded its grantmaking power in recent years, saying a 2025 shift from luncheon to evening gala produced a 319% increase in donations and a 138% increase in overall profit, allowing it to grant $360,000 in its largest cycle ever.

The scholarship arrives as Women to Women says more than 40,000 women in the local community struggle with food, safety, health and poverty-related challenges. Against that backdrop, Garvin’s recognition stands as both a personal milestone and a reminder that Guilford County’s next generation of leaders is being shaped in its high schools, its philanthropy and at N.C. A&T.