USC Aiken's Black Alumni Council Holds Inaugural Brayboy Brooks Scholarship Brunch

Earlier this month, two students received the Brayboy Brooks Scholarship from the university’s Black Alumni Council (BAC). Mr. Zulymon Drew and Mrs. Breanna Kennedy were this year’s recipients.

The Black Alumni Council established the Brayboy Brooks Alumni Scholarship in 2022 to award to deserving students.

“When the Black Alumni Council was started in 2016, [one of our goals was] to have two $1,000 scholarships to offer to students annually. This year, we were able to realize that goal. We had our application place on the website with the other alumni scholarships.This wouldn’t have been possible without the work of Jamacia McCray, the Black Alumni Council’s Vice Chair for Fundraising and Giving. She spearheaded our #GiveBAC campaign to raise the funds for the scholarships.” -Jamel Hodges on the upbringing of the Brayboy Brooks Scholarship

The scholarship is intended to be a tribute to the first Black student at USC Aiken, Barbara Alicia Brayboy Brooks. Brooks began attending the university in the Fall of 1964 and integrated the student population by doing so.

“This knowledge has not been very well known. As a matter of fact, there are those who believe that USC Aiken had always been integrated. However, our Gregg-Graniteville Library did some research and notified us that Ms. Brayboy Brooks is actually the first Black student at USC Aiken. Even more interesting, she was alive, well, and living in Aiken”

Scholarship recipient, Zulymon Drew labels the Brayboy Brooks scholarship as one of his proudest academic accomplishments at the university.

I am so humble. There were many people that they could have chosen from but knowing that there were people rooting for me really made me feel appreciated. -Zulymon’s thoughts upon recieving the scholarhsip.