Clint Foundation inspires students to work hard, give back

Clint Foundation Scholar Vanessa Hudson ’08 embraces the ideals of the scholarship that helped pay for her education at Stetson University as she mentored children at the Spring Hill Boys & Girls Club. The Clint Foundation, founded on five core principles focused on hard work and giving back, has provided scholarships for more than 20 Stetson University students since 2000. In 2003, the foundation created an endowed scholarship that will ensure support for a diverse group of students for future generations at Stetson. Many of the scholarship’s recipients are racial or ethnic minorities. The Clint Foundation asks its scholars to sign a pledge affirming its core values:

1. Help those who help themselves.

2. Make a moral commitment to give back in the future.

3. Realize the importance of working for something.

4. Appreciate and respect the value of all work.

5. Recognize that future success depends on the efforts of others at all levels.

Hudson, a Stetson graduate from Eustis, Florida, who majored in management, saw herself as a positive role model for the children at the Boys & Girls Club that met not far from Stetson’s campus. While attending Stetson, she taught life skills and time management to the youngsters, helped them with schoolwork, and played games with them. “I just [loved] helping the kids and seeing them improve,” she said. Hudson said her experience as a Clint Foundation Scholar gave her the strength and motivation to continue to give back to the community into the future. “The Clint Foundation Scholarship [was] a blessing, and...a representation of my ability to work hard, and my strong interest in supporting the community,” Hudson said.

Former Clint Foundation Scholar Stephanie Robbins ’02, an art professor at the University of Maryland, said her time at Stetson as a Clint Scholar inspired her to give back by sharing her passion for art with students and the community. Because of these experiences, Robbins said, “I have grown more confident in myself and in my worth as a woman, teacher, and artist.” John McClintock of the Clint Foundation said that the Foundation hopes that their scholarship recipients will pursue a lifetime of helping others in return for the help they received. Hudson and Robbins are already on a path of giving back.