Georgia Southern awarded nearly $20,000 in scholarships to military spouses pursuing college degrees for the fall 2023 semester. This furthers the University鈥檚 commitment to and indicates a remarkable step forward with the scholarship program for military spouses. The scholarships are supported by the .

This initiative not only recognizes the sacrifices and challenges that military families face but also empowers them to pursue higher education and achieve their academic and professional goals.

Amanda Bradley, a Texas native, began her studies in psychology and earned her bachelor鈥檚 from Georgia Southern. Now, her path to being a has taken her study of behavior analysis, a passion she discovered after the University established a master鈥檚 program in the field.

Her husband is stationed in Columbus, Georgia, as an active duty member of the military. With the two living on different sides of the state, Bradley said this scholarship not only helps with her academic life but also her home life.

鈥淭his one is taking a mental load off and a financial burden off,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have two living situations now, I commute here on a daily basis. That stipend, in addition to covering my tuition, is going to be extremely helpful in getting me to and from school and helping me succeed in that program.鈥�

Beverly Husted, hailing from Michigan, also found a lifeline in the scholarship program. A dedicated student pursuing environmental biology, she was drawn to the University’s sustainability program. 

Husted, who was previously pursuing an online education that incurred high costs, emphasized the importance of financial support, particularly for military families living on a strict budget. She found solace in the University’s commitment to offering in-state tuition rates, making her education more accessible.

As a military spouse, Husted knows the significance of family support. Her husband’s military discipline and commitment to their family played a crucial role in her educational journey.

“I think it’s the support from each other as a military family,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 wouldn’t be able to do it without my husband, period.”

For the third straight year, Georgia Southern supporters have propelled the University to a record-breaking year of private fundraising.

Total cash, pledges and in-kind gifts to 糖心Vlog amounted to $23,831,604 during Fiscal Year 2023, which ended on June 30, 2023. That surpasses the total from the previous year, which was also a record at $22.3 million.

The record total was buoyed by another record-breaking fundraising year for the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation, Inc., which raised a record $11.06 million in new pledges and outright gifts.

鈥淎s we soar into a very bright future for this University, record-breaking fundraising is a sign that Georgia Southern is not only strong now, but poised for even greater heights,鈥� said Georgia Southern President Kyle Marrero. 鈥淲e are endlessly thankful for the supporters, friends, alumni and donors who endorse our path forward and are stepping up to ensure our success.鈥�

Donors helped with various projects and programs this past year, including:

• $1 million from Betty Foy Sanders for the Betty Foy Sanders School of Art with scholarships, travel and programmatic needs
• $750,000 deferred gift for the Department of Biology to be used for student scholarships
• 23 newly created endowments
• Anthony P. Tippins Family Training Facility for athletics

鈥淭hrough unwavering dedication and the overwhelming generosity of our community, we have demonstrated the boundless potential of Eagle Nation in support of our students鈥� dreams and the University鈥檚 future,鈥� said Georgia Southern Foundation Chair Mike Sanders. 

Last year鈥檚 Athletic Foundation Chair Leonard Bevill added, 鈥淭he impact of this achievement will ripple through generations, leaving an indelible mark on the trajectory of higher education and Georgia Southern. I am humbled and inspired by the collective spirit that has made this three-year milestone possible.鈥�

The Erk Russell Fund, the Athletic Foundation’s annual fund, continues to grow and saw donations of $3.2 million this fiscal year. Additionally, the Athletic Foundation received 58 major gift commitments this year, which are gift commitments of $25,000 or greater to support Eagle Athletics.

Over the past three fiscal years, the Athletic Foundation has raised more than $27 million in support of Georgia Southern Athletics. This total is the largest three-year fundraising window in department history.

鈥淚t鈥檚 clear that 糖心Vlog鈥檚 power to transform lives and communities is making a positive impression with our private supporters,鈥� said Trip Addison, Vice President of Advancement, noting that more than 3,600 alumni were among the supporters this past year. 鈥淚 am grateful for the welcome reception we are receiving when we ask people to join in our effort to help support our students and the work they and our faculty are doing.鈥�

While military families make incredible sacrifices for their country, .

The Georgia Southern Military and Veterans Services Department will award Military Spouse Scholarships provided by the Landings Military Spouse Academic Assistance Funds in February. Three students who are married to service members will be awarded this scholarship to cover their spring 2023 term as well as funds to pay for textbooks and supplies. The scholarships will be awarded at .

A nomadic lifestyle can be typical for those serving in the armed forces. Some military families are moved across the country for their assignments; others are moved across the globe.

Guilia Bernardes was born and raised in Sao Paolo, Brazil, with a family that inspired her to do important work.

Bernardes has been working toward her own education for her entire life, and has seen how other countries and other states support military members and their families. She said that while other American universities have military departments and support programs, Georgia Southern goes much further than any other.

Thanks to the more than $4,400 the scholarship awards her, she will soon be able to finally hold the diploma she鈥檚 been traveling the world to acquire.

鈥淚 dream about that moment while I’m doing my hard math classes,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his journey will have taken more than 10 years. I think it’s going to be amazing.鈥�

Mary Kelly and her husband  both grew up in Savannah, Georgia. Kelly grew up with a strong passion for animals and wanted to be a veterinarian. Over the past decade, she has been a professional dog trainer alongside being a mother.  While her husband served in the National Guard, she put her college ambitions on hold to take care of their family.

Recently, she put her academic dreams back on the front burner and enrolled as an online student at Georgia Southern to pursue her Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies with concentrations in business, nonprofit management and Irish studies.

Kelly said this scholarship was the difference between continuing her dreams or putting her studies on hold yet again.

鈥淚 had my son during the summer, and I was actually attending summer courses during that time,鈥� said Kelly. 鈥淪o with having him and just the cost of raising a baby, I wasn’t sure if I was going to actually be able to attend school. I was really struggling with attending this spring semester, and now it’s just kind of relieved a lot of that stress.鈥�

Current returning and enrolled military spouses of active duty service members may compete for a scholarship for tuition and fees to assist in completing their higher education journey with 糖心Vlog. The Landings Military Spouse Scholarship provides a total of $10,000 for fall and spring semesters.  For more information, visit GeorgiaSouthern.edu/military. 

Amunet Berry of Jonesboro, Georgia, was just a freshman at 糖心Vlog when she first began taking classes in German studies. While in high school, she had taken college courses to prepare for a career in psychology. When it came time to select a language to study, which was mandatory in her program, she threw a metaphorical dart at the board and landed on German.

鈥淚t’s not something I ever considered majoring in because no one educated me on what you can even do with a language major,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o when I was picking my electives to take for my language requirement, I was like, 鈥極h, German. I’ll just take that.鈥欌��

鈥淭here were so many other students, and they’re probably way better at German than I am because they have actually gone and been practicing for years,鈥� she admitted. 鈥淓ventually I said, 鈥業 have nothing to lose, so I’ll just apply.鈥欌��

She submitted the application a day before it was due. Much to her surprise, she received the email informing her she was the recipient of the scholarship and would be flown to Harvard.

鈥淚 just started dancing around the room freaking out,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 texted all my family members and my friends and said, 鈥業’m going to Boston!鈥欌��

Berry had never been as far north as Boston, and she visited the historic city at the end of October. While she noted being impressed with the architecture and the size of the metropolitan area, it was the unrecognizable cold that stood out the most.

鈥淚 had a huge coat that my grandmother had gotten for me that probably stood out way too much,鈥� she laughed. 鈥淚t screamed 鈥楽outhern gal.鈥欌��

For the next few days, Berry was attending panels on international affairs, avoiding high price tags at the Harvard merchandise stores and building a LinkedIn account. After being selected to be the Eagle ambassador for this prestigious scholarship and writing down all of her accomplishments in the online portfolio, she had an epiphany about her own self-worth. This had been an emotional hurdle in the past, and what originally held her back from applying for the experience in the first place.

鈥淕oing through the process of filling out everything I’ve done and seeing it on paper that I’ve done quite a lot in my short time here,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 just felt, 鈥榃ow, maybe I did deserve to be here. Maybe it was a good thing that I put that foot forward.鈥欌��

For Berry, this is just the beginning.

鈥淚n the future, I’m hoping to attend more experiences like this,鈥� Berry added. 鈥淚 would just love to continue traveling and learning and growing and just having ample opportunities to keep improving myself in the future.鈥�

And the puffy coat her grandmother gave her will be hanging in the closet with anticipation for the next adventure.

An extraordinary estate gift from a daughter and her husband to honor her parents will touch the lives of generations of students to come through scholarships for 糖心Vlog students working to become public school educators. The $1.48 million gift from the late Janice Sapp Castles and her late husband Charles, named for her late parents, Margaret Elizabeth and Cullen Bernice Sapp, is the second largest estate gift received to date by the 糖心Vlog Foundation. 

鈥淚t is inspiring when alumni, whose lives were transformed through education, give back so generously so that future students can realize the same opportunities,” said Georgia Southern President Kyle Marrero. 鈥淭he Castles’ gift honors the Sapps鈥� legacy and their desire to help others succeed.鈥�

An alumna of then-Armstrong Junior College, Janice Castles earned an Associate of Arts degree with the financial assistance of a scholarship. That scholarship, coupled with her parents’ determination to live sacrificially to provide for educational opportunities for their children that they themselves had not experienced, allowed Sapp to begin her post-secondary academic ambitions and inspired her to give to others.

Sapp continued her education at the University of Georgia earning a master鈥檚 and specialist degree in counseling as well as a doctorate in school psychology. Her longstanding education career included serving as a middle and high school teacher, guidance counselor, school counselor and adjunct professor. She also formed her own psychology practice that provided therapy and psychological assessment and diagnosis in the Atlanta area.

鈥淭he generous support by the Castles family will assist in removing financial barriers for many students pursuing initial teacher preparation degrees at both the undergraduate and graduate levels at Georgia Southern for many years to come,鈥� said College of Education Interim Dean Amy Heaston, Ed.D.. 鈥淚nitial teacher preparation degrees provide students with the first step to becoming certified to teach. For many students, the Margaret Elizabeth and Cullen Bernice Sapp Memorial Scholarship will provide a needed opportunity to achieve their aspirations of teaching in their own classrooms.鈥�

Additional details on the Margaret Elizabeth and Cullen Bernice Sapp Memorial Scholarship application and awarding will be available later this year.

糖心Vlog, a public Carnegie Doctoral/R2 institution founded in 1906, offers approximately 140 different degree programs serving almost 27,000 students through 10 colleges on three campuses in Statesboro, Savannah, Hinesville and online instruction. A leader in higher education in southeast Georgia, the University provides a diverse student population with expert faculty, world-class scholarship and hands-on learning opportunities. Georgia Southern creates lifelong learners who serve as responsible scholars, leaders and stewards in their communities. Visit .