HPU Students Win First Place in N.C. Campus Engagement Hunger Challenge
Pictured from left are Nyila Johnson, president of the Volunteer Center; Lovelle McMichael, assistant director of the Center for Community Engagement; and Niyah Williams.
HIGH POINT, N.C., Jan. 25, 2024 – A team of two High Point University student ambassadors, Nyila Johnson and Aonesti Byrd, and their mentor, AmeriCorps VISTA Grant Hines, recently beat out more than a dozen other teams from four-year private schools to win the North Carolina Campus Engagement (NCCE) Hunger Challenge. Since 2010, NCCE has helped college communities address food insecurity.
The two student leaders from HPU’s Volunteer Center and their mentor were recognized on Jan. 6 for participating in the challenge to advocate for food security in the High Point area. As the top prize winner in the four-year private sector, HPU was awarded $5,000 to support its on-campus food pantry. Food Lion will present the checks to the winning university presidents at the NCCE Presidents Forum on Feb. 14.
Johnson, a senior entrepreneurship major, and Byrd, a sophomore, planned six events throughout the fall semester to collect food donations and educate their peers. From Sept. 11 to Dec. 22, 2023, HPU competed against 13 other schools in the state. The two student ambassadors assisted with the collection of nearly 3,770 nonperishable items for three local food pantries at the HPU Pro Bono Clinic, Macedonia Family Resource Center and D-Up, a local nonprofit and afterschool program aimed at teaching children how to live healthy lifestyles.
Partnering with the neighboring Food Lion, the students hosted a drive to spread the word within the community. Some of the other events included fundraisers and a no-sew blanket-making session.
“I’m so grateful to have been chosen to help lead this challenge,” said Johnson, president of the Volunteer Center. “It was another great way for us to promote service within our campus community and build more meaningful relationships in the city of High Point.”
One of the more popular events they executed was the Volunteer Center’s Hunger Games. In partnership with the HPU men’s basketball team, guests for the Nov. 29, 2023, game against Morgan State University were encouraged to bring three cans of food in exchange for an athletics T-shirt. In the weeks leading up to the game, student organizations, residence halls and community partners competed against one another to collect as many nonperishable items as they could. The winners were recognized during the game and presented with a prize for their hard work.