HILTON HEAD, S.C. – The University of North Carolina at Pembroke was named the winner of the 2017 SunTrust Foundation Connecting Communities Award at the Peach Belt Conference's annual awards dinner in Hilton Head on Tuesday evening. UNCP received the honor for "Braves Buddies: Day of Recognition" which brought more than a hundred elementary school children to campus.
UNCP becomes the first school to win the award for a second time, having also been lauded with the honor in 2014 for their Athletic Connections program. This is the sixth year of the award program.
The event, which was sponsored by Southern Interiors & Design, celebrated the second year of the Braves Buddies program which is designed to encourage and inspire reading at a young age, as well as to facilitate mentorship opportunities for Pembroke Elementary School students with UNCP's more than 400 student-athletes.
More than 120 first-graders attended the event and all received a personalized bookmark as well as a certificate of participation in the program that was presented to them in a ceremony at halftime of a men's basketball game that drew nearly 1,900 fans. The first-graders were also treated to a behind-the-scenes experience that included a tour of the facility and the chance to interview in front of the green screen and cameras of the athletic department's studio.
Members of all 16 UNCP varsity teams and administrators took part in the program. Student-athletes work with Pembroke Elementary students in small groups, team reading and in one-on-one situations. During the 2016-17 year, UNCP student-athletes dedicated nearly 2,000 hours to volunteering their time. More than 450 student-athletes have participated since the program began in 2015.
The SunTrust Foundation Connecting Communities award is designed to recognize efforts undertaken by PBC member institutions to reach out and be a partner with their local and regional communities. The award provides a cash prize to be given to the winning schools' Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
