Hartsville, S.C. – Coker College senior Patricia White of Society Hill has been named the 2008  Student of the Year by the South Carolina Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (SCNASW). Social work professor Jeanne Cook nominated White for the award based on her good academic standing, professional ethics and personal integration of education and the community experience.

Formerly a law enforcement officer, White is now pursuing a Bachelor of Social Work in Coker College’s evening program. As vice president and president of the college’s Social Work Student Association, White has facilitated Thanksgiving dinners for foster children and their families, back to school picnics and distribution of school supplies for less fortunate children, and campaigns to clean up highways and adopt families at Christmas.

Also among her accomplishments, White has presented workshops on gang violence at Coker College’s annual Social Work Conference and at the 2008 SCNASW Spring Symposium in Myrtle Beach.      

Throughout 2008, Coker College is celebrating 100 years of students who, like Patricia White, pursue excellence in and out of the classroom.

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