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| More than 2,300 rubber ducks float down the river Saturday during “Ducks on the Tuck,” an annual fundraiser for New Century Scholars. The event was held in Sylva this year. |
More than 2,300 rubber ducks were adopted during this year’s “Ducks on the Tuck” fundraiser for New Century Scholars.
The event was held on Saturday, April 23, in conjunction with Greening Up the Mountains in Sylva.
Karen Smith of Sylva adopted the winning duck and will receive a 40-inch flatscreen television, which was donated by Custom Sound and Security of Franklin. It was one of more than 40 prizes awarded through the annual event, which is New Century Scholars’ primary fundraiser each year.
Final fundraising figures were still being tabulated at press time.
“We could not have asked for better weather, nor could we have hoped for a more-generous outpouring of community support for this wonderful program,” said Brett Woods, director of the Southwestern Community College Foundation. “Thanks to the generosity of everyone who donated a prize and adopted a duck, we will be to induct even more students from Jackson, Macon and Swain Counties into New Century Scholars this fall.
“I want to offer special thanks to a dedicated, hard-working team of volunteers, the Town of Sylva, Jerry DeWeese, Jr., and his team, New Century Scholars students from Jackson, Macon and Swain Counties, SCC students, SCC maintenance staff and countless additional volunteers,” Woods added.
Founded in 1995 by then-Jackson County superintendent Dr. Charles McConnell and then-SCC president Dr. Barry Russell, New Century Scholars provides last-dollar tuition assistance and extra support such as dedicated advising.
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| Tucker the Duck, mascot for “Ducks on the Tuck,” stands with Dr. Don Tomas, SCC president, on Saturday in front of the Jackson County Courthouse in Sylva before the start of the annual fundraiser for New Century Scholars. |
Deserving, high-potential seventh-grade students in Jackson, Macon and Swain Counties are identified and inducted into the program each year. The number of students admitted each year is directly tied to the success of annual fundraising efforts, of which Ducks on the Tuck is the largest.
For more information about New Century Scholars, contact Pamela Judson at 828.339.4477 or pjudson@southwesterncc.edu.
