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Eight people in a collage
(Top, left to right) Blair Blackburn, Carter Boyd, Bobbi Clements, and Callee Hodges. (Bottom, left to right) Brianna Stokes, Bianca Simmons, Christine Taylor, and Catherine West.

BCCC Foundation congratulates fall scholarship recipients



The Beaufort County Community College Foundation is proud to announce the following scholarship recipients for the Fall 2021 semester. These are just a few of our recipients. We will announce more throughout the fall. Registration opens on October 15 for the Spring 2022 semester. While the Beaufort Promise covers all tuition and fees through May 2023, students can apply for scholarships to cover the cost of textbooks.

Blair Blackburn, 44, received the Lucy Burgess Scholarship. The Washington resident is working toward an Associate Degree in Nursing and plans to work at Vidant Health. Blackburn attended J.H. Rose High School. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Salem College. She is the wife of Ricky Blackburn and a mother of two.

Established in 1996 as a memorial to Lucy W. Burgess, a former resident of Beaufort County and long-term employee of the NC Department of Social Services, this annual scholarship is awarded to a student with academic promise. The recipient must have some work experience, be committed to getting an education, and have a GPA of 2.5 or higher.

Carter Boyd, 18, received the Shereda Bailey Scholarship. The Bath resident is a nursing/RIBN student. Boyd attended Northside High School. The child of Renee & Keith Boyd of Bath, Boyd plans to become a nurse practitioner.

Shereda Bailey was a promising young BCCC nursing student who died unexpectedly in 2006 - just three weeks before graduation. Shereda’s mother, Sheila Rogers, combined memorials raised by Shereda’s fellow nursing students, and funds raised by family and friends, to start an endowment in her beloved daughter’s memory. The scholarship is awarded to deserving nursing students under the age of twenty-five.

Bobbi Clements, 32, received the Tayloe’s Hospital Pharmacy Scholarship. The Greenville resident is a practical nursing student. She attended West Carteret High School and currently works as a certified nurse aide in the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville. She plans to work as a nurse practitioner in the same unit.

Tayloe’s Hospital Pharmacy Medical Scholarships are awarded annually to students pursuing a career in the medical field. Tayloe’s Hospital Pharmacy is now known as O’Neal’s Pharmacy. Qualifying students will have a 2.5 GPA or greater and must be a resident of Beaufort, Hyde, Martin, Tyrrell or Washington County. Student must demonstrate financial need.

Callee Hodges, 21, received the Dorothy & Allen Taylor Medical Scholarship. The Greenville resident is working toward her Associate Degree in Nursing. She attended D.H. Conley High School and plans to work as a registered nurse at Vidant Medical Center, where she works as a nurse aide. She is the daughter of Calvin and Jenny Hodges of Winterville.

Sam Taylor established this scholarship in memory of his parents, Dorothy and Allen Taylor. Scholarships are given to second year nursing RN students who are Beaufort County natives who intent to stay and work in Beaufort County and plan to continue their education at an accredit university towards a BS degree. Students must demonstrate financial need.

Brianna Stokes, 19, received the Margaret Hodges Hackney Scholarship. The Washington resident is working to become and licensed practical nurse. She attended Washington High School, and currently works as a Food Lion 2-Go Associate in Washington. She is the partner of Gavin Everette and the daughter of Brian and Toresso Stokes of Washington.

Established in 2005 in memory of Margaret Hodges Hackney, this endowment makes permanent Mrs. Hackney's long-time annually funded scholarship in memory of her father, Ralph H. Hodges. Both spent a lifetime in community service, with a special interest in education. The endowment makes awards to BCCC nursing students, with priority given to students in the Practical Nursing program who demonstrate financial need and academic merit.

Bianca Simmons, 31, received the Gordon Hoffman Scholarship. The Raleigh resident is working toward an Associates in Applied Science in Criminal Justice Technology. She is married to Jakeem Simmons. Simmons graduated from Southwest High School. She holds a paralegal degree from Carteret Community College, and she plans to become an activist in the community for the wrongly accused and arrested. She also plans to help people who struggle with addiction or that have been recently incarcerated with getting into rehabilitation facilities. Simmons currently works as a federal probation clerk.

Created from the sale of land donated to the foundation by Dr. Gordon Hoffman, this scholarship is awarded to a law enforcement officer seeking to further his or her education with a degree in criminal justice. Prior to his retirement in 2003, Dr. Hoffman was the director of BCCC’s basic law enforcement training (BLET) program.

Christine Taylor, 22, received the Southern Bank Scholarship. The Pantego resident is a business administration student. Taylor currently works as a teller at First Bank, and she graduated from Northside High School. She is the daughter of the late Jesse Taylor of Belhaven and Penny Russ of Pantego.

The Southern Bank offices in Beaufort County established this endowment to provide scholarships to Beaufort County Community College students residing in the areas of Belhaven, Bath, Pinetown, Pantego and all of Hyde County.

Catherine West, 26, received the Clarence & Mildred Hollowell Scholarship. The Pinetown resident is a nursing student. She attended Gloucester High School, and she plans to work as a registered nurse. She currently works with Broad Creek EMS as an emergency medical technician. West holds a Bachelor of Science.

Clarence Hollowell, Jr. created this endowment to honor and memorialize his parents, Clarence and Mildred Hollowell. Mr. Hollowell, who died in 1979, was a native of Belhaven and a career Coast Guardsman. He and his wife, Mildred, raised six children in Belhaven. The scholarship assists BCCC nursing students who live in or near Belhaven.


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