Alumni Board member Evelyn Jones '84 is on a mission to honor the impact of the late biology major Crystal Scott '82. The recipient of Wittenberg’s Martin Luther King Award and charter member of the first black sorority at Wittenberg, Delta Sigma Theta, Scott passed away from an aggressive form of bone cancer a few months after graduating from her beloved alma mater.
“Crystal was a model in resilience," Jones said. "She was the epitome of having the light and passing it on...She was doing it all. She was determined to graduate from Wittenberg."
Jones wasn’t the only one inspired by Scott’s persistence and optimism. Rosalind DuBose ’82 recalls, “While at Wittenberg, Crystal was such an amazingly positive young woman. I marveled at her tenacity, perseverance, and strength as she encountered her health challenges. Crystal maintained a steadfast commitment to education, which allowed her to complete the coursework necessary to graduate from Wittenberg in 1982.”
The biology department also supported Crystal with the late Professor of Biology Dave Mason especially looking out for her.
"He helped her when she went to the hospital, and he was there when she died," Jones shared.
Today Crystal's legacy lives on in a scholarship bearing her name. Established by friends and relatives, the scholarship is given to a sophomore or junior African-American woman who demonstrates a concern for public service as evidenced through her campus and/or community involvement and leadership.
Jones recently learned that $10,000 was needed to fund the full endowment level, so she offered a $5,000 matching challenge during this year's #Commit2Witt. Now she is asking others to join her in making this scholarship possible for a student who may have significant financial need and, in Crystal's spirit, "someone that changes things in the world."
“She was my sorority sister and my friend,” DWana “Dee” Filey Davis ’82 said. “She had a loyalty to those she held close and an indomitable spirit. Her loss is something that I still carry with me to this day. The memory of Crystal T. Scott lives on with each winning recipient of the scholarship. Donate to honor her memory and her legacy.”
To make a gift, please visit https://www.wittenberg.edu/ScottScholarship.
In order to continue honoring the life of Crystal T. Scott and provide Wittenberg students with the opportunity to receive this scholarship, Evelyn Jones will match up to $5,000 for any donations made to this scholarship.
