This month, scholarship recipients met with and thanked some of the donors who have changed their lives through support of VCU Health Sciences students at the annual MCV Campus Endowed Scholarship Brunch.

“It is always heartening to see scholarship recipients and donors coming together to celebrate our students,” said Margaret Ann Bollmeier, president and CEO of the MCV Foundation. “This event is a vivid reminder of how important our mission is and how vital scholarships are for keeping a world-class education in the health sciences within reach for tomorrow’s leaders.”

On the MCV Campus, more than 563 endowed scholarships support health sciences students, including 22 new endowments since last March. About $9.6 million in endowed and current-use scholarship support was available for students in the 2024-25 academic year.

Guest speakers at this year’s brunch included Clifton Porter II, a VCU College of Health Professions alum, and his wife, Deborah, a graduate of the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at VCU. The couple established the Porter Legacy Scholarship in 2021.

“Having support is transformational,” Clifton said. “Sometimes we don’t know what we’re capable of until someone makes an investment in you and says, ‘I believe in you.’ It is incredibly important for us to educate future leaders who can identify with patients they’re serving, with those patients’ stories, and with staff.” 

Hayden Dux, a third-year student at the VCU School of Medicine, offered a reflection on the impact being a scholarship recipient has made on his time on the MCV Campus. Dux received the Harry and Harriet Grandis Scholarship.

“Scholarships support students who have tremendous things to offer medicine and the world through a career in health care, as well as those who may not otherwise have the means or opportunity to pursue this calling,” Dux said. “The scholarship I received was the catalyst for all of the incredible learning experiences I’ve had during the past few years.”

To view the full photo album, visit the MCV Foundation's Facebook.

Story originally posted to MCV Foundation News.