By Jonah Grinkewitz
On Give2ODU Day, stories like Amaya Allen’s show how a single scholarship can allow students to focus more on their academic and career goals.
Allen was inspired to pursue a degree in health services administration after seeing a lack of attentiveness from hospital staff when her grandfather was ill in 2023.
With the help of Old Dominion University's Concordia Scholarship, she was able to dedicate more time to her goal of making a difference in the healthcare industry as an administrator in a hospital or retirement home.
“I don’t even know what word to use because it was life changing and I’m getting even more opportunities than before I had the scholarship,” Allen said.
With the scholarship money, she was able to take off from work one day each week this semester to apply for internships and become more active in her major. This summer, she will start an internship with the City of Norfolk working to ensure health and safety standards through the human resources department.
The ODU Student Concordia Scholarship Endowment was established in 2016 to help a full-time student who is active on campus and gives back to the community through service work. The endowment is funded entirely by ODU students who are encouraged to donate an amount based on their graduation year. This spring, graduating students can give $20.25 or more.
“The scholarship has made me feel closer to ODU,” Allen said. “Something that my mom has always told me is that ‘If you’re fortunate enough to have, you should give back.’ So, if they have it, if they’re willing to, even if it’s just a small amount, we see that totaled up, it was able to change someone’s life.”
Allen has volunteered to help clean up campus, make lunches for people in need and encourage students to vote. She has also participated in mental health awareness events through her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
While funding for Allen’s scholarship came from graduating seniors, after graduation, alumni like Kevin Knaack ’97 give back to ODU to support the programs that led to their career success.
Through Standard Calibrations Inc., where he is a partner, Knaack has donated to the Darden College of Education and Professional Studies. He studied industrial technology at ODU and is impressed with how the program has grown since the 90s.
He recently had the chance to meet with Basim Matrood, who leads the program, to share insights on what he sees coming in the industry.
“He’s looking for input to make sure what he’s teaching is relevant and students have the right skill set,” Knaack said.
About a decade ago when data centers were on the rise, his company collaborated with ODU on an apprenticeship to train workers to calibrate sensors at these facilities. Standard Calibrations Inc. has also recruited multiple ODU alumni to work for their company.
“We need people to work for us, so investing in your hometown university is good for everybody,” Knaack said.
He said it’s great to be in a position to give back and that several ODU alumni at his company personally donate to the University.
“There’s a real sense of family with ODU. We have Norfolk affiliates who never went to ODU, but they give to the university because they feel that community connection at events and they like what they see. I think that speaks volumes.”
To contribute to Give2ODU Day, happening from noon on April 10 to noon on April 11, visit their website.