PEMBROKE— UNC Pembroke student Kiana Myers has been selected for outstanding leadership and service by North Carolina Campus Compact, a statewide network of colleges and universities committed to community engagement.
Myers is a recipient of the network’s Community Impact Student Award, which honors one student leader at each member school. The award recognizes students with a deep commitment to community involvement and the ability to inspire peers. Campus Compact honored the recipients during a virtual awards ceremony on Nov. 5: https://youtu.be/k1HzKCcoSY0
Myers is a senior international business major and is the UNCP CARE Resource Center manager. The center includes an on-campus food pantry and professional clothing closet open to students, faculty, staff and community members. Myers and the other CARE Resource team members served more than 2,300 patrons in the last academic year, assisted with raising $11,291 in donations, and helped recover over 59,000 pounds of food.
To demonstrate how the CARE Resource Center partners with others to complete the cycle of food, Myers has showcased and highlighted the work of the UNCP Campus Garden and local farmers. As the N.C. Collegiate Hunger Challenge Ambassador, she has reached out across campus to Athletics, the Office of Campus Engagement and Leadership, various academic departments and student organizations to engage them in the efforts to address and educate others about hunger-related needs on campus.
Myers started a TikTok page for the resource center to highlight new partners, cooking in college ideas using food from the CARE Resource Center, share information about the center and promote volunteer opportunities. One of her videos reached nearly 8,000 views in the first week of being posted.
Community and Civic Engagement Director Christie Poteet, who nominated Myers for the award, said, “Kiana embodies the characteristics of servant leadership.
“In her various roles on campus, she leads her peers in service by setting an example of what it means to be an active and engaged leader and citizen. She consistently goes above and beyond to find new and innovative ways to educate our campus and community about hunger,” Poteet continued.
