Palmetto Ridge student Amara Okonkwo has been named a Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholar, one of the most competitive scholarships in the country for community college students. The award provides up to $55,000 per year to help her complete a bachelor’s degree. She will transfer to Clemson University next fall to study bioengineering.
Okonkwo came to the Lowcountry from Enugu, Nigeria, at age 14 and is the first in her family to attend college in the United States. At Palmetto Ridge, she has balanced a 4.0 GPA with a part-time job as a pharmacy technician, undergraduate research on water quality in Cooper’s Run, and tutoring in the Math Café.
When I started here, I did not know what bioengineering was. My professors kept opening doors and telling me to walk through them. I want to design affordable medical devices for communities like the one I came from.
— Amara Okonkwo, Biology student
A team effort
Okonkwo credits STEM Pathway Advisor Marcus Bellamy, marine science professor Dr. Yusuf Haddad, and math professor Dr. Samuel Adeyemi for pushing her to apply. Bellamy helped her map every course to Clemson’s requirements, and faculty reviewed drafts of her essays.
Students interested in competitive transfer scholarships can meet with advisors in Student Success & Advising or attend the Transfer Fair on October 28 in Ridgeview Commons, where representatives from more than 30 universities will be on hand.