Eleven Voorhees Student Health Ambassadors Receive $22,500 in Scholarships

Eleven Voorhees University student health ambassadors have been awarded a combined $22,500 in scholarships in recognition of their leadership, service, and commitment to promoting health and well‑being among their peers and in the community. The awards spotlight the university’s role in training peer educators and wellness advocates who work directly in rural Bamberg County.

The Student Health Ambassador Program is one component of the HBCU Health Discovery Program, sponsored by the South Carolina Center for Rural and Primary Healthcare, and operates in partnership with the Voorhees University Rural Community Development Institute. The program “continues to provide education, prevention and access to resources and services in rural Bamberg County and surrounding areas helping to decrease healthcare disparities one community at a time.” That outreach focus frames the scholarships as more than student aid; they are investments in community health capacity in an area with persistent rural access challenges.

Ambassadors fill multiple frontline roles on campus and off: they serve as peer educators, wellness advocates, and liaisons between students and school health services. Their responsibilities include delivering health education programs, coordinating wellness events, providing peer support and referrals, and assisting with outreach initiatives that promote physical and mental health, prevention, and access to care. The release states these students “have demonstrated exceptional dedication to serving the campus population and the wider community through volunteer work, health campaigns, and ongoing outreach efforts.”

A photo caption provided eight of the eleven names in left-to-right order: Christina Cooper, Lutrenia Gravesande, Lasinagaye Bennett, Dahjmere Reddick, Jayva Brown, Shoncarra Clarke, Tiana Williams, and Trevornique Williams. The release indicates there are 11 recipients in total; three recipient names were not included in the supplied text. The announcement also did not specify a breakdown of the $22,500 total by individual award amounts. If split equally, $22,500 divided by 11 would be about $2,045 per recipient, but the university did not state whether awards were equal or varied.

Some technical and metadata items accompanied the release and may require clarification from the university communications office: "[Voorhees]: VU 3D Horizontal whiteText 2048x539 1," "andrew huth UNCF SC GA April May 0107," "FdqvlYuWQAEANRF scaled," and "BTW renovation in progress 5." An original summary line in the materials was truncated as “The Student Health Ambassador program is part of the HBCU Health Discovery Pro,” while the full press text uses “HBCU Health Discovery Program.”

For Bamberg County residents, the scholarships signal continued local engagement by Voorhees University in public health education and prevention work. Funding that supports student-led outreach can expand prevention services, strengthen links between students and medical resources, and help build a pipeline of locally engaged health professionals. For more information, contact Suzanne Williams at swilliams@voorhees.edu.