Celebrating Scholarships 

For the first time in two years, the TTC Foundation welcomed guests to the 2022 Scholarship Luncheon on April 6.

More than 160 student scholarship recipients and donors attended the event, sponsored by Bank of America, to celebrate 2021-22 scholarship recipients and thank donors.

The event kicked off with a very special Q&A between TTC President Mary Thornley and Polly Sheppard, one of the five survivors of the attack on Emanuel AME Church. Sheppard, a retired nurse, has become an activist and public speaker, and started a scholarship at TTC for students interested in correctional or forensic nursing. She shared her perspective on the importance of forgiveness in overcoming a tragedy like this.

“If you can’t forgive, you can’t move forward,” said Sheppard. “It took three months, but it was something I had to do.

After a heartwarming and inspirational conversation with Sheppard, Dr. Thornley called five scholarship recipients to the stage for the panel portion of the program. As she asked them all questions from her podium in the back of the room, it became clear that, as diverse as this small group of students appeared, they all had one thing in common: receiving a scholarship helped them financially.

But more importantly, it gave them a boost of confidence, an essential - but often lacking - element of academic persistence and success.

Amber (Nikki) Walker is the very first recipient of the Polly Sheppard Nursing Scholarship. She had always wanted to be a nurse, but said she never had the confidence to pursue it. When her daughter was born with health issues, she became interested in the field again. Having previously worked as a corrections officer, Walker saw a gap in adequate care for inmates, and she knew she wanted to go in that direction.

When Dr. Thornley asked what she has learned about herself during her time at Trident Tech, Walker answered, “I learned that I can do hard things. In the past when things went wrong, I would just stop whatever it was, quit. Now that I have kids who are watching, I want them to see that if you work hard and persevere, you will be rewarded.”

Troy Livingston is a 35-year-old husband and father of three who has worked in the food and beverage industry for 20 years. He is pursuing a career in Homeland Security Management and has been accepted to The Citadel’s Intelligence and Security studies program. He said that when the pandemic hit, he decided to take a chance and completely change careers.

Livingston said when he found out he received a scholarship, it gave him an added push to be successful. “I realized my hard work is paying off. It means they recognize me as someone worthy of their support, which is empowering,” he said.

Kimiyonn Sadler was born in Johns Island and graduated from St. Johns High School with straight A’s, academic accolades and plenty of college acceptances. But navigating university as a first-generation student with no guidance eventually caused her to drop out, get a job and abandon the idea of college altogether.

But like Livingston, the pandemic was a wake-up call for her. She saw that TTC was offering free courses and enrolled in August 2020 with a major in marketing.

The difference between her two college experiences?

“Support,“ said Sadler. “I needed support to accompany my college experience, and I got that here at TTC.”

David Chaffin is 32 years old and has been an electronics technician in the U.S. Coast Guard for 14 years. Chaffin grew up in Winfield, W. Va., and joined the Coast Guard immediately after high school graduation. 

He is pursuing a degree in electrical engineering through TTC’s 2x2 program with The Citadel in order to become an officer and said it’s tough to handle all of the responsibilities.

“But I’m focused because I’m on a time-table with my next tour coming,” he said.

Chaffin said he decided to pursue electrical engineering because he often works with engineers and has seen what they do. “I know their secrets,” he jokes. “But I know I can do at least as well.”

At 54, Lisa Ballesteros is jumping into the IT world headfirst, a place that she never thought she’d be.

“I was the most technically challenged person I knew,” said Ballesteros.

That’s the reason she decided to major in Network Systems Management and Cybersecurity. She wanted something very challenging that would occupy her mind as she was going through some tough personal challenges: divorce and becoming a single mom with a special needs child. 

Receiving the scholarship helped her through those tough challenges. Knowing that she had that little bit of extra financial “breathing room” helped her relieve some of the stress and gain more confidence.

“To get that recognition, to be seen and recognized for my accomplishments, that encouragement propelled me.” said Ballesteros.

In total, four hundred scholarship awards totaling $416,298 were awarded to students during the 2021-22 academic year. The luncheon was a great success and joyous occasion celebrating students and donors.  

 7/13/2022/Staff