by Tatyana Phelps

VSU students will have the opportunity to meet a television judge as the lives of the first two African-American VSU students are honored at the Thomas-Pierce Scholarship Dinner.

The scholarship dinner, hosted by the Office of Social Equity, the Black History Month Committee and SGA, will honor Drewnell Thomas and Robert Pierce, the first two African-American students at VSU in 1963. The dinner will be held Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. in the Student Union Ballrooms.

The two-time Emmy-nominated Judge Glenda Hatchett will be the keynote speaker at the dinner. Hatchett can relate to Thomas and Pierce, as she was the first black presiding judge of a state court in Georgia. As the chief presiding judge of the Fulton County Juvenile Court, she is the head of the one of the largest juvenile court systems in the United States.

“Drewnell Thomas and Robert Pierce served as pioneers of our university in representation of integration, opportunity and equality,” Tyler Barker, SGA president, said. “These two former students of VSU are a constant reminder that higher education can (be) beneficial to all.”

The scholarship will benefit first-generation college students who have at least a 3.0 GPA and are in good academic standing with the university. The Thomas-Pierce Scholarship was established last year during the 2013-2014 school year.

The dinner is $20 for students with a valid VSU ID and $30 for non-students. Tickets can be purchased until Feb. 18 at www.valdostastate.org/ThomasPierce; donations are also accepted.