Ansong-Bawuah Scholarship Recognizes Ghanaian Senior

On May 24th, 2007, in Woodbridge, Virginia, the Ansong-Bawuah Award was presented to its first recipient, Naa-Lamle Lamptey, a Gar-Field Senior High School senior. The award is the brainchild of fellow Ghanaians, Dr.Annette Ansong, Kofi Bawuah, and Amy Ansong. All three graduated from Gar-Field Senior High School and the University of Virginia. The award was created to recognize a Ghanaian senior at Gar-Field Senior High School, who has plans on attending the University of Virginia in the Fall. The $500 scholarship will go towards Ms. Lamptey's education. Ms. "Tiffany" Lamptey will be attending the University of Virginia in the Fall, with plans on majoring in Chemistry.

When asked about the creation of the scholarship, each benefactor had similar comments.

Kofi Bawuah, a computer engineer, stated that the purpose of the scholarship is "to encourage scholastic excellence by providing an incentive for African or African-American students to succeed by matriculating from one alma-mater to another."

Annette Ansong, MD, a pediatric cardiology fellow at Duke University, stated that "by giving back to the community, it is a way to show support for our fellow Ghanaians. Many Ghanaians are here in the U.S striving for success and academic achievement. We wanted to provide a way to encourage them while acknowledging their achievements."

Amy Ansong, an Economist/Senior Urban Planner stated that it was important to build a bridge between their high school and their university, the University of Virginia. " All three of us were visiting UVA, and were brainstorming, trying to come up with a positive way to help our University and the Ghanaian community. This scholarship now gives other Ghanaian students something to look forward to. Academic excellence is now being highlighted and rewarded."

Kofi, Annette, and Amy do have plans on continuing this scholarship on a yearly basis and they also have plans on increasing the scholarship amount. When asked about their plans on taking their mission and talents to Ghana, they all answered eagerly and stated that they would be more than willing to assist their homeland Ghana if the opportunity presents itself.