Samuel Mwaura

As one of the Promise Scholarship FAM leaders, we were required to make two presentations of the requirements needed to sustain the Promise Scholarship. We were split into two groups with each making one presentation: Academics and Program. I was in the academics group alongside about 10 other FAM leaders. It was a fun time creating the presentation and getting to meet new friends and make connections with my now friends. Not only did we make and present the presentation, but we also attended Mr. Elio's presentation about Give Push and helped out wherever we could. Overall, it was a great experience getting to talk to and meet new people, teaching the new group of new scholars, and watching as those scholars learn more about us and the scholarship itself!

This is the total hours spent during the training sessions for the Promise Scholarship FAM Leaders. During the Summer, I and around 15-20 other FAM leaders attended meetings hosted by Ms. Kimberly. During the training, we learned about what our requirements and expectations as leaders of the Promise Scholarship. I and the group gained a variety of skills including communication. Using our new skills, we were able to effectively communicate the requirements of the Promise Scholarship and more. We communicated the requirements through a presentation that we performed in front of our brand new Promise Scholars during our presentation at LAUNCH.

I and about 10-15 other students volunteered at the PGCC Graduation! It was quite a hot morning as we handed out pompoms to all the graduates' families, but all the smiles and good attitudes from them helped us keep pushing through the day. When the commencement started, we all went indoors for a break while we ate breakfast with a number of faculty and staff in the VIP room. I sat at the table with Ms. McIntosh where I discussed my plans about either joining or making a club. I then talked with Mr. Heat about STRIVE and future plans as I move onto my sophomore year. Finally, we end off the day with handing out t-shirts to all the graduates and breaking down boxes. Overall, it was a great experience being able to participate in and I thank Ms. Johnson for the opportunity.

At the End of Semester Spring 2026 meeting, we discussed all the requirements needed in order to be in good standings and continue to receive the promise scholarship benefits. Along with that, we asked questions at the end of the meeting with mine being: Will there be a deadline to when we can use the money provided during the Summer term? The question was then answered by saying they haven't received that information yet so it is to be determined.

During this baseball game we played Hagerstown Community College. I wouldn't normally watch baseball, but I have friends that play the sport so I decided to go and try to understand it. It made sense, but sometimes I just couldn't follow along with the points because I didn't know the rules and was going based of people screaming. Nevertheless, PGCC scored the first point by #5, Carter Ptek, as he runs to home base because #17, Gavin Romanowski, sent a rocket straight past the Hagerstown's pitcher. One thing I didn't know about baseball is how hype the team and crowd was during the game. The team had chants and there was even a commentator! The commentator being there helped me the most because he could just narrate when someone scored and I wouldn't be confused when I looked at the scoreboard. The match went on and unfortunately PGCC ends in an upsetting loss 1-6. Although we lost, I still learned a bunch about how baseball works and even how PGCC's baseball team works together.

During the Spring 2026 Allied Health and Nursing Early Advising Week, there were hundreds of students who came in to gain transfer help and job opportunities. It was a very informative event and I myself went over to the UMD advising table. I had a conversation with Mr. Wontae Neal and Ms. Kaitlin and I was able to learn a great amount especially after being put in contact with Ms. Polly to help me with my classes and how to transfer.

I and many other students sat down in the lecture hall and Ms. Payne explained and showed us how to understand, create, build career-based accounts on LinkedIn. The entire session was very information and afterwards, we made connections with the other students there on LinkedIn to get us started.

I and 4 other students met at UTC campus to talk about our relationship with money. It was an open, honest, and impactful experience to me because normally, one's relationship with money is a sensitive topic, but it quickly became a safe space in order for us to grow together.

During the ReFresh zoom meeting, we discussed the requirements on how to keep the promise scholarship in good standings. It was very informational and many of the students, including myself, asked questions about the events we were discussing.