I am currently a first-year biological engineering student from Arlington, TX. As I begin my professional career, I wish to go into natural resources engineering and sustainability to make an impact long after my graduation.
My journey to North Carolina A&T was a purposeful one. I knew that I wanted to go to an HBCU out of state. However, an obstacle that could not go unnoticed was the extra cost of travel, tuition, and extraneous fees. This propelled me into a scholarship hunt where I discovered the Chuck Burch Scholarship Fund. This scholarship was specifically made to help determined out-of-state students like me get to North Carolina A&T. At first, when I applied for this scholarship I thought it would be a single event. Yet, I was pleasantly surprised to see after I received one of these scholarships, that this fund is beyond giving out money to students. This scholarship fund was an incredible resource for me to meet prospective students from the same area as me and access mentors within the workforce to add to my network. Before I had even arrived at North Carolina A&T, I had the advantage of being connected with a group of peers. Another incredible advantage of this fund is that the network from this scholarship is so strong that I have access to multiple internship opportunities. All of these benefits have been through my willing engagement in events hosted by the Fund. I am truly blessed to have this scholarship in my life and it is something that I will continue to readily be a part of during my four years at North Carolina A&T and long after I graduate.
—Simone Horton