Lawrence family establishes new scholarship for Durham Tech students

Aaron and Alexa Lawrence established a scholarship last year to benefit first-generation college students, international students, and adult learners at Durham Tech. The scholarship provides one student annually with $1,000 to help offset tuition costs and textbooks.

“Durham Tech has been a really important part of my experience and growth in the U.S. so we thought it would be really nice to give back,” Aaron Lawrence said. “There’s a lot of people that don’t have an opportunity or tools to pay for education so it’s nice if we can help anyone who needs it. It’s just a small legacy of my time at Durham Tech.”

Lawrence attended Durham Tech after relocating to the U.S. from London with his wife, Alexa. He was out of school for more than 15 years when he enrolled, and said it was challenging.

“I graduated from secondary school at age 16 and immediately entered the workforce so I hadn’t been in an educational setting in over 15 years. I was anxious about being an older student and feeling out of my depth,” he said. “So much had changed. We didn’t have laptops last time I was in school, and all the papers we submitted were handwritten.”

Aaron said his anxiety quickly subsided once he realized how diverse and inclusive Durham Tech was.

“It was a really good introduction to the United States because Durham Tech is such a microcosm of the nation as a whole. There are so many different types of people from so many different types of circumstances, all different ages and backgrounds,” he said. “It was really quite humbling. I was in classes with younger students in the early 20’s that had children, full-time jobs, and were going to school. It was really uplifting to see what people were doing and it really put things into perspective for me.”

Aaron pursued his Associate of Arts degree and graduated in 2019.

He always knew he wanted to establish a scholarship down the road. Alexa’s family had started a scholarship at a different college years earlier to honor her brother’s memory, so the Lawrences thought gradually about starting their own.

The Aaron Lawrence Scholarship was established in 2021 and the first recipient of the scholarship was Amber Igodan, an Associate of Arts student.

“Education has always been an important factor to my life. I was raised by a single parent so I’ve realized what a great privilege it is to have access to quality education as a first-generation student,” she said. “Finances have been a struggle especially since COVID, but with the help of the Aaron Lawrence Scholarship I was able to pay for some of my classes during the Fall 2021 semester.”

Today, Aaron is a listing agent for a real estate firm in Chapel Hill.

“Durham Tech has a real place in the community, helping everyone attain qualifications and grow as individuals,” he said. “It was really incredible to see classmates everyday that were going through so much adversity and life experiences. They were all different ages and from different backgrounds, all coming together for a common cause. It was awesome.”

Learn more about the Durham Tech Foundation.
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Contact Marcy Gardner, Content and Social Media Coordinator, at gardnerm@durhamtech.edu