Special to the Herald
Vicki Lewis gave the name “Imani” to her daughter because she sensed she would be special. Imani is taken from an African word that means faith or belief. And Imani has rewarded her mother’s faith.
Imani Lewis recently learned she is one of six “Bill Gates Millennium Scholars” in Georgia. The scholarship will pay for all her expenses for both her undergraduate and graduate courses of study.
Lewis has been accepted at Oxford College, the “baby” of Emory University in Atlanta. Students at Oxford are “groomed” for two years to become Emory Scholars. The complete cost of a six-year education at Oxford/Emory could be as much as $500,000. If she continues for her doctorate, the scholarship will pay for an additional $250,000 of expenses.
According to the Gates Foundation, the Millennium Scholars program was founded in 1999 by Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, and his wife Melinda. The purpose of the program, according to the Gates Foundation: “Reducing financial barriers for African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander American and Hispanic American students with high academic and leadership promise…and…providing seamless support from undergraduate through doctoral programs for students selected as Gates Millennium Scholars.”
To qualify to become a Millennium Scholar, Lewis said:
“I first had to write eight separate essays, an a wide range of topics from my favorite subjects, long-term career plans, and even about my most dismal failures. As my Mom is a Language Arts teacher, completing these to her satisfaction was no easy task.”
Vicki Lewis, is the Language Arts teacher at the Performing Learning Center in Statesboro, and was selected as this year’s PLC Teacher of the Year.
While her academic transcripts detailed her academic accomplishments, she also had to provide details about her extra-curricular achievements, such as taking first place at the Science Olympiad with her project in Forensic Science. Also, she acted in the SHS Vaudeville Show and many one act plays.
Perhaps most important was her community service.
“I had to provide proof of all my involvement in community affairs, such as when I helped to found SCREAM (Students Committed to Recycling Activism in Moderation) and all about the summer when I volunteered to help out at the Same Day Surgery Center and in the Women’s Pavilion at East Georgia Regional Medical Center.”
Vicki Lewis said she admires her daughter for her straightforward way she deals with all of life’s ups and downs. She said the whole family has a strong religious faith.
“She’s an all-around kid,” Vicki Lewis said. “I haven’t had any episodes from her, thank God. We stay prayed up in my house. We go to church, Bible Study, and Sunday School.”
For her part, Imani Lewis said: “I’m very protective of my mom and my sister, Nia, who is in the eighth grade at William James Middle School. After my parents divorced, we became a really tight-knit group, and we watch out for each other all the time.”
Imani Lewis admits she is a little nervous about going off to college. She said she “loves” biology and may major in neural science – the study of brain activity.
“I’m a little uncertain about what all of this is going to be like,” she said. “I really don’t know what’s going to happen. “I know it will all work out, and I’m really excited too.”
Vicki Lewis plans to help her daughter however she can.
“Imani always calls me when she’s away from home, even if she’s just at work,” she said. “As long as she keeps doing that while she’s at school, everything will be fine. And, oh, by the way, we’ll be going up to visit her whenever we can.”
Imani Lewis said that would be fine with her.
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