Gold Standard
Meredith Bullard
Major: Biomedical engineering
Career Goals: To use my knowledge of engineering to make a positive impact on people’s lives
Scholarships: James and Connie Hackney Scholarship, Honors and Access Scholarships
What does receiving this scholarship mean to you?
I feel honored because there are hundreds of other students who could have been selected as the recipient of my scholarship. I feel successful because this achievement is about more than money. It validates the long hours spent in the library, sacrifices and time put into my extracurricular activities. To know I was selected means all my hard work and efforts have been acknowledged.
What do you like most about your major?
Engineering is all around you. I have learned over the past four years that engineering is a way of thinking. It continues to challenge me and allow me to solve problems that can have more than one answer. It combines creativity, passion, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills to reach an end goal. I chose the biomedical concentration because it brought together my passion for helping people and wanting to learn more about the human body. And to top it all off, the professors are excellent and want to help their students succeed in all aspects of life.
Why should alumni support scholarships?
College can be a lot to take on at times. Finding your community, performing well in school and finding the means to pay for it can be stressful. Supporting scholarships means that you are taking one of those loads off somebody’s shoulders. I hope to one day give back to ECU so another student like me can receive the college experience that I have been so fortunate to have.
What advice would you give someone thinking about applying to ECU?
One thing that stuck out to me about ECU when I was looking at colleges was the campus. I wanted the size of a larger university with the feel of a small campus. After I toured the campus and did my research on majors that interested me, I knew ECU was going to be a place where I would excel. Additionally, seeing the Pirate community supporting all aspects of the university, from academics to athletics, was a deciding factor for me.
Donor spotlight: James and Connie Hackney
James and Connie Hackney support students and priorities in the College of Engineering and Technology. Although they aren’t alumni, the Hackneys have been loyal supporters of the university for decades.