COLUMBIA, S.C. (WACH) — Benedict College marked a milestone with its one hundred and fifty-third graduation ceremony.
“It makes me feel amazing just seeing the different minorities here graduating and seeing how we can get an education and make ourselves better and have future jobs” said Kasey Cooper, Benedict College graduate.
Heavily involved students like Kasey Cooper among others who made history Friday night as part of the largest graduating classes in the history of the college, a journey students like Cameron McKinney say did not come easy.
“The pandemic really set me back and I really thought about life for a minute, we tried our best with online school but it wasn’t the best.”
Despite the obstacles, students say they are proud of their accomplishments and the impact Benedict College has made on their lives.
“They have helped me throughout my career, and college experience just always being their for me as a family,” McKinney.
An impact decorated with visits, opportunities, and grants from national and local leaders as the Biden Administration has poured more than $2.2 billion in funding into Historical Black Colleges and Universities in the country in the last year as part of the American Rescue Plan.
“Commencement is not about completion it’s about new beginnings, it’s about blazing a new trail and today marks a new beginning for you,” said Dietra Trent, Executive Director of the White House Initiative on HBCUs.
