AC student, Rayvin Webber, receives Lenawee Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee Scholarship
Posted Tuesday, January 18, 2022
Author: Claire Simpson
Each year, the Lenawee Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee comes together to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King (MLK) Jr. by awarding a scholarship to a student in a position of leadership in student organizations and other aspects of campus life. This year, Adrian College senior Rayvin Webber, majoring in biology and minoring in biochemistry, received the award.
The Lenawee MLK Jr. Celebration Committee cancelled the annual in-person event, scheduled for January 17th, due to rising COVID-19 numbers and is planning to create a highlight reel spotlighting all of the scholarship recipients.
“It’s an honor to represent Martin Luther King Jr. and live on what he inspired to be, especially me being a black woman. I want to be able to inspire others like me to continue on this path,” Webber said.
Rayvin Webber, a native of Saint Louis, MO, came to Adrian College to pursue her dreams as a pediatric oncologist in neonatology. After spending nine months in the newborn intensive care unit (NICU) after her brother was born at 23 weeks, Webber said she was able to get to know the doctors, nurses, each child, family; and that experience led to her choice of career.
Stephen Mitchell, secretary of the Lenawee MLK Jr. Celebration Committee and director of Academic Services at Adrian College said, “she’s a good leader on campus and a hardworking student who would represent the scholarship well.”
While attending Adrian College, Webber has been involved in many organizations on campus, serving as the executive board of African American Leaders Promoting Higher Achievement (ALPHA), vice president of Campus Activities Network, Biology Club, Pre-Health Society, Promoting Rights of Individuals with Disabilities Everywhere (PRIDE), and Sisters that Empower Prevail and Succeed (STEPS). Webber is also a TRIO mentor and McNair Scholar.
“I am grateful for my time at Adrian College and all the opportunities I received here.” Webber said. “Being at Adrian (College) verses a big institution has given me a better opportunity to receive scholarships and be more involved. I’m a name here and not just a number. Adrian College has become my home away from home.”
Being a first generation college student and soon to be graduate, Webber explained how important this scholarship is to her and her mother. She noted how scholarships like this have resulted in a weight off of their shoulders, especially in this last semester as she looks forward to going to medical school.
Webber is currently in the application process for different research programs around the country with the goal of going to medical school and eventually landing a job in her dream position as a pediatric oncologist at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
The Lenawee MLK Jr. Celebration Committee Scholarship’s goal for over 20 years has been to help students who’ve shown leadership and involvement and “to honor the legacy of Dr. MLK Jr., specifically in Lenawee County and to remind the community that the work is ongoing,” Mitchell said.
“Martin Luther King Jr. had so much hope for our future,” Webber said. “It inspires me to have hope for my brothers future, my future, my children’s future and to give them a life in a society where they can do anything and have no fears.”
