25 years of promoting
college access
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
In the fall of 1992, sen
iors at Carver and Glenn
High Schools embarked on
a journey that no student
before had traveled when
they made the decision to
join Crosby Scholars, a
partnership designed to
prepare students for col
lege admission.
From modest begin
nings at only two high
schools, today Crosby
Scholars has grown to
impact every high school
in the local district and oth
ers in the area, graduated
nearly 9,000 students, and
helped more than 33,000
students prepare for col
lege. While celebrating the
success of the more than
1,000 students who repre
sent the Crosby Class of
2018, during the annual
Seniors Honors Gala held
at the Benton Convention
Center on April 30, Crosby
supporters and sponsors
also celebrated the 25th
anniversary of the first
graduating class, the Class
of 1993.
"To the special Class of
1993 we celebrate you're
willingness to join this
unknown program 25 years
ago," said Anc Newman,
chairman of the Crosby
Scholars Board of
Directors.
"You paved the way for
others including those who
are standing here tonight
and we thank you."
During the keynote
address Dr. Karrie Gibson
Dixon, vice president of
Academic and Student
Affairs for the UNC
System, and a member of
the first graduating class
said, Crosby Scholars
brought a sense of energy
to Carver that wasn't there
before. She said it brought
energy that let them know
that college can be an
option.
Gibson- Dixon who
currently serves as the
interim chancellor at
Elizabeth City State
University said Crosby
helped her understand the
importance of planning for
the future.
"I have a lot of great
memories of my high
school days, most of them
spent with me and my
friends preparing for pep
rallies and basketball
games and deciding' what
clubs we wanted to partici
pate in and making sure
everything was in order for
prom," she continued. "No
matter what was going on
though as a Crosby Scholar
I knew I had to perform
well in the classroom and
plan for my future.”
While addressing the
Class of 2018, Dr. Gibson
Dixon told students to
always be prepared to grow
and never give up on work
ing towards their goals and
dreams. She said,
"..Everyone in this room at
some point has felt like
giving up. But Fm telling
you if you feel that way
keep pushing. That’s what
it's going to take.
"Keep pushing. Re
evaluate. Set additional
goals and you will get
there," she continued,
"...there's a great journey
ahead of you. There's a
legacy to carry on, it's okay
to take a break from time
to-time but you will have to
continue on towards your
greatness."
Following the keynote
address students from high
schools across the county
received their honorary
Crosby Scholars' pins.
Scholarship recipients
were also recognized dur
ing the gala.
For future Crosby
Scholars, the Crosby
Scholars Community
Partnership has been
awarded $45,000 over two
years from the National
College Access Network
(NCAN) to fund a Near
Peer Advisor at Forsyth
Technical Community
College.
NCAN offered the re
grant opportunity, funded
by the Michael & Susan
Dell Foundation, “to help
college access organiza
tions establish or signifi
County declares opioid
crisis a public nuisance
BY TODD LUCK
THE CHRONICLE
Forsyth County
Commissioners voted on
several items on May 10
related to the national opi
oid epidemic, including
declaring it a local public
nuisance.
The overuse of legal
prescription opioids is
being widely blamed for
the current crisis of opioid
addiction that is taxing first
responders, jails and
numerous other services
across the nation. Forsyth
County already approved
joining many government
entities nationwide, includ
ing the City of Winston
Salem, in suing opioid dis
tributors and manufactur
ers. To help with the law
suit, commissioners
approved a resolution last
week declaring the opioids
crisis a local public nui
sance that must be abated.
“Considering the 456
opioid-related deaths in the
county from 1999 to 2016,
there is a known record of
evidence of this epidemic
to support the declaration
of a public nuisance,” said
Commissioner Gloria
Whisenhunt.
Both the city and the
county’s lawsuits are part
of multi-district litigation
overseen by U.S. District
Judge Dan Polster in Ohio.
The lawsuits say that man
ufacturers overstated bene
fits and downplayed the
risks of opioids while dis
tributors failed to properly
monitor and report suspi
cious orders of prescription
painkillers.
Also during the meet
ing, commissioners
approved several grant
applications related to opi
oids. This included two
grants applications by the
Emergency Services
Department’s Mobile
Integrated Health (MIH)
Program for Cardinal
Innovations Healthcare's
Community Reinvestment
funds. One is a $137,000
grant to purchase a year’s
supply of the opioid with
draw drug Buprenorphine,
which would be first
administered to patients on
the scene, and to hire a
Licensed Clinical Social
Worker/Case Manager to
link the patients to a
Medication-Assisted
Treatment provider so they
can continue to receive the
drug while in treatment.
The other is a $120,000
grant for continued reim
bursement for ambulance
trips in the hospital diver
sion program.
Commissioners
approved an MIH applica
tion for a $150,000 state
grant for peer support spe
cialists to work with MIH
paramedics as part of post
overdose reversal response.
They also approved an
application for a grant of up
to $20,000 from the UNC
School of Government -to
participate in its intensive
two-year collaborative
learning model that’ll pro
vide direct response and
support to ten counties on
the opioid crisis.
In other business,
Ashleigh Sloop was
appointed to replace
County Cleric Carla Holt
when she retires at the end
of May.
cantly expand success pro
graming, and ultimately
increase the rate at which
loft-income and first-gen
eration students graduate.”
Crosby Scholars was one
of 12 organizations from
across the country to be
awarded the re-grant fund
ing.
The funding will sup
port expansion of Crosby
Scholars’ Near Peer advis
er program to Crosby
Scholars who enroll at
Forsyth Technical
Community College
(Forsyth Tech) to guide
them through their first
year in college.
In 2017, 103 Crosby
Photo by Tevin Stinson
Karrie Gibson-Dixon delivers the keynote address
during the Crosby Scholars Senior Honors Gala on
April 30.
Scholars enrolled at
Forsyth Tech - the largest
number of the program’s
graduating
seniors. The Near Peer
advisor at Forsyth Tech
will ensure Crosby
Scholars at Forsyth Tech
know how to connect to
on-campus resources their
first year on campus. In
addition, the Near Peer
advisor will connect stu
dents to alumni at Forsyth
Tech, so that they will have
peer support and opportu
nities for study groups, and
extra-curricular activities
on campus.
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