Building a Life Around Giving Back: Adelphi's 2024–2025 Newman Civic Fellowship Winner

Candice Garwood, a student in Adelphi's Levermore Global Scholars program, is this year's recipient of the fellowship from Campus Compact for students working to bring about change. She is the seventh consecutive Adelphi student to win the annual award.

Candice Garwood, a rising junior who came to Adelphi from Kingston, Jamaica, has always been committed to helping others.

"The idea of giving back was instilled in me at an early age," she said. "My mother got us to donate clothes, canned goods and other items to children's homes and elderly homes. She emphasized being considerate of those who are less fortunate. Most of all, she told us it was important to share your energy, your ideas, your talents and your time. That just stuck with me."

That attitude, and the selfless ways she has served members of neighboring communities around Adelphi and back home in Jamaica, earned her a 2024 Newman Civic Fellowship, given by the Campus Compact organization to highly engaged students who show potential for public leadership. The one-year fellowship program creates a network of students from across the country and helps them develop strategies for social change.

Adelphi students have won fellowships in each of the past seven years, reflecting the University's commitment to preparing leaders.

A Global Perspective and an Eye on Local Communities

Garwood, who speaks three languages and is pursuing a degree in International Studies, began her community work at Adelphi almost as soon as she arrived on campus.

The runner-up for the 2023 Outstanding First-Year Student Award, she won a prestigious Jagger Community Fellowship from Adelphi that summer. The fellowship provided her a paid internship at the National Urban League, where she worked with its Jobs & Workforce Development division, which provides employment services that help individuals and families become economically self-sufficient.

Garwood also established herself as a campus leader. She is a Levermore Global Scholar (LGS), a member of Adelphi's innovative program that prepares students to become global thinkers and leaders in a rapidly changing world. As the LGS community outreach officer this year, she organized a campaign to collect donations of toiletries and food items for Glory House Recovery, a residential program in Hempstead, New York, for women struggling to recover from addiction, sickness and domestic violence. She will be president of the LGS Student Leadership Council in the coming year.

She also tutors Adelphi students at the University's Center for Academic Support and Enrichment; serves as an admissions ambassador; works with local high school students through Adelphi's College Rise mentoring program; volunteers at the Panther Pantry, which provides food and necessities to students and staff who face food insecurity; and tutors high school students in Jamaica online-all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA.

Adelphi President Christine M. Riordan noted in her letter to the Newman Fellowship judges: "As one of the most engaged and highly motivated students in her class, Candice has demonstrated that she will make the most of a Newman Civic Fellowship. Her desire to work for the benefit of others and bring positive changes to society has an incredible impact."

An Active Force in Jamaica

Garwood's commitment to social justice began when she was a teen in Kingston and saw how homeless people suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. She got involved with the Street People Liberation Foundation, helping marginalized people who had been hit hardest by the global crisis. Getting shelter, food and medical care had always been a struggle for the unhoused, and the pandemic made their situation much worse. Garwood helped with the power of the pen. "I did some letter writing to corporations to encourage big donations to get the help they needed," she said.

She also tutored Jamaican high school students in Spanish to prepare them for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate exams. While the official language in Jamaica is English, there has been a national push for students to learn Spanish as a second language because it's the most common language in the Caribbean.

"A lot of students cannot afford private tutoring, and I wanted to alleviate the disparity in access to educational resources," said Garwood, who did not charge many of the students she tutored. "Education can change lives."

Preparing for a Career Helping to Bring About Change

Adelphi is helping her reach her goals. "I have met some great professors and great students," Garwood said. "I have been encouraged to consider different opportunities, and that's because it's a small campus. The direct interactions with my professors have helped me find my path."

Garwood is pursuing an International Studies degree with concentrations in Spanish and business. She participates in the Willumstad Winning Edge program, the in-depth career-readiness program offered by Adelphi's Robert B. Willumstad School of Business, and plans to pursue an MBA and work in corporate social responsibility or international development. Her goal is to use her empathy, leadership skills and knack for problem-solving to help make the world a better place.

"I wanted a very specific degree, which I found at Adelphi," she said. "Adelphi's programs have helped me learn more about global issues, learn how a business operates, and learn more about culture and language."