夏洛特律师主持圣约大学校友会
Charles Hands, a Carolina Covenant alumnus, wants to give back to the program that gave him so much.
《太阳城娱乐》让查尔斯·W. Hands III ' 14到太阳城娱乐.
The scholarship program gave the bright-eyed teenager ready to study chemistry the financial security to attend the University.
Now he wants to make sure current students have the same opportunities.
The Charlotte-based attorney stepped up to serve as chair of the Carolina Covenant alumni advisory board in the scholarship’s 20th anniversary year, which coincides with the 10th anniversary of his graduation from Carolina. Hands continues to value the impact of the Covenant on his education and career.
“它改变了游戏规则，”汉兹说. “这改变了我的生活.”
Hands moved to Chapel Hill from Wilmington to pursue his undergraduate degree. Initially, he found it difficult to adapt to the new scenery and pace of life. But the Covenant helped smooth the transition, providing Hands with a family at Carolina. 通过专业指导, movie nights and the guidance of Covenant academic coordinator Fred Clark, 他慢慢地适应了大学生活.
“There were thousands and thousands of people there, 但这些人了解我, 他们是为了我的利益着想,汉兹说。.
In this environment and through discussion with academic and professional advisers from the Covenant team, Hands realized his passion in life — helping people.
He knew that wherever he found himself in life, he wanted to give back to those in need. 在咨询了克拉克之后, he made the decision to change his major to African, African American and diaspora studies and begin the pre-law track.
And the Covenant program threw its support behind him, no questions asked. The team immersed Hands in the law school experience through simulated classrooms and free LSAT prep.
“当我进入法学院时, my goal was to make Fred Clark in the Covenant proud for supporting me, 于是我说, ‘嘿, 当我进入法学院的时候, 我要努力成为世界第一. 汉兹说. “第一学期结束后，我排名第一. 1在班上. 我确实做过.”
From financial aid to pizza dinners to grad school preparation, the Covenant made its mark on Hands’ time at Carolina.
他想确保, 大学毕业后, he could give back to the program that gave him so much. Hands now works with his uncle at Hands 法律 Firm in Charlotte, but he never strays far from his mission to help those around him or the Covenant.
Through the North Carolina Bar Association, he volunteers for programs like Wills for Heroes. He also finds opportunities through local organizations, teaching opportunities for students at nearby universities, and church groups — anything that enables him to give back to his community.
His commitment to fostering spaces for equitable access and education led him to the Carolina Covenant alumni advisory board.
“He came to our senior banquet and all of the alumni, 学生们, 甚至不让他离开,安·特罗林格说, associate director of the Carolina Covenant and alumni engagement and coordinator of the alumni advisory board. “They were saying he was such a motivational speaker.”
His tenure as chair gives him the chance to reconnect with alumni and current students, 兑现他对克拉克的承诺.
“在我从卡罗莱纳大学毕业之前, 我答应过他总有一天, “当我在另一边时, if I can see this through and this works out like you keep saying, I’m going to be 100% involved with Covenant as much as I can,汉兹说. “我将永远支持卡罗莱纳盟约.”
