“The scholarship provided so much support and really helped me progress in all ways – mentally, emotionally, educationally. If you have someone saying ‘I’m rooting for you. I’m supporting you’, it helps you reach your full potential.”
The ceremonies will also see three outstanding individuals receive honorary awards for their community impact and commitment to creating a better, fairer world.
Russell Martin, manager of Southampton FC and founder of the Brighton-based Russell Martin Foundation, will receive a Doctor of Science award for using the power of football to change lives.
Global best-selling author and journalist, Dorothy Koomson, receives an honorary Doctor of Letters for her work to improve literacy in marginalised communities, including in her adoptive home city of Brighton & Hove.
The honorary award of Doctor of Science will also go to David Webb, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for NHS England, who has led the transformation of pharmacy services across the NHS.