{"id":14942,"date":"2024-04-11T14:02:37","date_gmt":"2024-04-11T18:02:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/?p=14942"},"modified":"2024-04-11T14:51:55","modified_gmt":"2024-04-11T18:51:55","slug":"it-means-everything-to-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/it-means-everything-to-me\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018It means everything to me\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"UMES
From left: Gerald Elston Jr. (School of Pharmacy & Health Professions); Mikalya Carroll (School of Education, Social Sciences and the Arts); Kennedy Holder (School of Agricultural and Natural Sciences) and Isaac Cullen (School of Business and Technology) were the recipients of the Award of Excellence for their respective schools during the 71st Honors Convocation at the Ella Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center on April 4. (Joey Gardner photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

When Mikayla Carroll<\/strong> arrived at the Ella Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center on April 4, she was unaware of the surprise awaiting her.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Members of the Federal Reserve Team (from left:) Dr. Leesa Thomas-Banks, Zachary Solembrino, Simala Wright, Dr. Monisha Das, and Mofinyinfoluwa Oladapo are recognized during the 71st Honors Convocation at the Ella Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center on April 4 (Joey Gardner photo).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Carroll, a graduating senior majoring in commercial photography, was one of four students who received the Award of Excellence for their respective undergraduate schools during the 71st<\/sup> Annual Honors Convocation. The convocation, held in the Ella Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center, celebrated the academic achievements of more than 700 University of Maryland Eastern Shore undergraduate students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As with tradition, the four award recipients had no knowledge they were chosen for the recognition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel very grateful and blessed,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen I came into the building, I didn\u2019t even get a program, so I had no idea about it. It was a wonderful surprise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to Carroll (School of Education, Social Sciences and the Arts), Issac Cullen<\/strong> (School of Business and Technology), Gerald Elston Jr.<\/strong>, (School of Pharmacy & Health Professions), and Kennedy Holder<\/strong> (School of Agricultural and Natural Sciences) were named as most outstanding students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elston, a graduating senior majoring in rehabilitation services, said being named an Award of Excellence winner is a testament to his persistence, strong faith, and a solid support system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was all about hard work, dedication, a loving God, a loving family, and a department that\u2019s second-to-none,\u201d he said. \u201cThe faculty and staff put the students first and want to make sure that they excel, and this is just a culmination of that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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2020 UMES graduate and current English lecturer Jessica Money, pictured with Provost Dr. Rondall Allen, receives a ceremonial plaque after addressing the audience during the 71st Honors Convocation at the Ella Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center on April 4 (Joey Gardner photo).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Holder, also a graduating senior, said being a recipient of the accolade had her \u201coverwhelmed with joy\u201d as it showed the importance of engagement and diligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI made good connections with my teachers and feel like as my time at UMES is coming to an end, this hard work is paying off,\u201d the human ecology major said. \u201cBeing part of an event like this and making your name known on campus is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cullen, the sole underclassman to receive the award, said he did his work in an unassuming fashion, which made it all the more surprising for the electronics engineering technology major.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI figured I was just a normal student doing what students do,\u201d the junior said. \u201cI feel it\u2019s a great honor and it\u2019s setting me up for my future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Convocation keynote speaker Jessica Money<\/strong>, a 2020 UMES graduate and current English lecturer, remembered when she was in a similar position as many of the students in the audience. Money emphasized the importance of taking the time to cherish all of the little victories on the way to the ultimate goal \u2013 graduation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday is only a mere moment in your journey, but it is a moment of recognition and celebration for the hard work you have invested so far,\u201d she said. \u201cPlease, do not let this moment slip past you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carroll said being named an Award of Excellence winner vindicates her choice to attend UMES.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t be any more grateful for the professors I\u2019ve gotten the opportunity to meet here and the experiences I\u2019ve had here leading up to this wonderful opportunity,\u201d she said. \u201cIt means everything to me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Mikayla Carroll arrived at the Ella Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center on April 4, she was unaware of the surprise awaiting her. Carroll, a graduating senior majoring in commercial photography, was one of four students who received the Award of Excellence for their respective undergraduate schools during the 71st Annual Honors Convocation. The convocation, held…Read more \u2018It means everything to me\u2019<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1559,"featured_media":14945,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","wds_primary_category":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-14942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1559"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14942"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14942\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14942"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/pr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=14942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}