Camden City Teen Named First Recipient – Honored at Boys & Girls Club of Camden County’s Teen Recognition Dinner
A Camden City teen is receiving a life-changing opportunity after being selected as the first recipient of a full scholarship from the newly established MHS Lift Scholarship Fund.
Scholarship recipient Amir King, Jr., of Camden, was honored at the Boys & Girls Club of Camden County’s (BGCCC) Annual Teen Recognition Dinner at Rowan University Business Hall on May 30.
“I’m both grateful and stunned, and humbled for this incredible opportunity,” said Amir, 19, a Camden Academy Charter High School graduate. “Receiving this scholarship will have a huge impact on my life.”
Brothers Andy and Brett Levin, owners of MHS Lift in Pennsauken, NJ, have pledged over $200,000 to establish the MHS Lift Scholarship at Rowan University. In partnership with the University, the scholarship will provide full academic support, complete with books, room and board, for undergraduate students at Rowan who are also active members of the BGCCC.
According to Brett Levin, “My brother Andy and I believe that the Boys & Girls Club of Camden County is a tremendous organization that provides support and safety to children and teenagers to enhance their abilities to learn and grow into strong adults. We wanted to invest in those kids as well and established this scholarship to give them an opportunity to get an education at a University that will provide them with a chance to give back to their families and communities. Rowan certainly is that University and they were fantastic to work with in order to put this scholarship together.”
The staggered scholarship will accept one new student per year and will include a full academic scholarship and full coverage of room, board, and book costs. Throughout a four-year period, there will be four students enrolled at any given time. In addition to being an active member of the BGCCC, the undergraduate student recipients must be full time residents of the state with demonstrated financial need. Recipients of the renewable scholarship will be determined by Rowan’s Division of Strategic Enrollment Management.
The BGCCC has as its mission to “enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring and responsible citizens.” With the scholarship, MHS Lift recognizes the organization and its impact on the community’s students.
Amir’s mother, Lillian, was in tears when she learned that her son will go to college for free. “I was completely blown away – and can’t be more excited or proud of him,” she said. “Amir had been involved with the Boys & Girls Club since he was 8-years-old and nothing but positive experiences have come out of there. It’s been wonderful to have an environment that he felt comfortable in, to have mentors that he could look up to and have peers. Now that he works there, he wants to stay after hours and really enjoys having that interaction with other urban kids.”
Rowan’s Senior Vice President for University Advancement John Zabinski said, “MHS Lift felt that it was important to give back to students in need and I’m happy that Andy and Brett chose to partner with us to make a difference. Rowan is playing an active role in Camden’s revival and partnerships like this support that. Thanks to this scholarship, recipients can graduate from college debt-free and have access to the highest quality educational experience.”
