V
oorhees College Department Chair of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences Dr. Tywana Chenault Hemby was recently awarded $37,500 by Inter-Faith Youth Core (IFYC) Faith in the Vaccine Ambassadors Project, which was created to develop students to lead COVID-19 vaccination efforts in communities of hesitancy.
Hemby will recruit 20 student ambassadors, serve as a coach and cohort lead throughout the project, provide individual and peer-based support as student ambassadors’ work progresses, and track stories of impact and program learnings. Ideally, the students will have a personal connection to those communities where vaccine hesitancy is high.
Additionally, she will be given a $7,500 stipend, and student ambassadors will receive a $1,500 stipend for their efforts over the project time period of June-December 2021.
According to IFYC, student ambassadors will begin the program by participating in training designed and led by IFYC. They will then work on vaccine-related projects with Hemby to plan and implement accessibility and trust-building projects in high-need communities with which they are connected. Also, student ambassadors will have the opportunity to develop their plans to address hesitancy or access with the guidance from Hemby.
She said she is extremely excited that our scholars will have an opportunity to participate in such a critical project. “By serving as Interfaith Youth Core Vaccine Ambassadors, they are ensuring that Voorhees College continues to contribute to the health and safety of our local communities, our state, and our nation.”
About IFYC
Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) is a national non-profit organization working towards an America where people of different faiths, worldviews, and traditions can bridge differences and find common values to build a shared life together. To advance this vision, we work in American higher education, partnering with colleges and universities to equip students and educators with the knowledge, skills, and resources to meaningfully engage complex religious differences and diversity issues and ultimately build bonds of civility and mutual respect across lines of deep difference.
For more information, contact the Office of Communications, at 803-780-1191 or at communications@voorhees.edu.
