Three new Sullivan Fellows inducted into Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation

Lees-McRae College has inducted its newest cohort of Sullivan Fellows into the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation, a service organization that the college has partnered with to provide students with valuable opportunities and leadership skills for nearly 100 years.

The program gives Sullivan Fellows the tools, experience, and confidence they need to become “changemakers” in their community. Sullivan Fellows receive support from the foundation through scholarships, awards, and changemaker training initiatives such as retreats and study-abroad experiences. Each year, up to four sophomore students are inducted into the foundation and receive a scholarship.

The 2024 cohort of Sullivan Fellows includes Pre-Physical Therapy major Layla Tillery, Sports Management major Xavier Carey, and Outdoor Recreation Management and Wilderness Medicine and Rescue double-major Lilly Anthony.

In addition to their studies and their participation in the Sullivan Foundation, all three of the newly inducted Fellows are student-athletes. Tillery and Carey play for the women’s and men’s basketball teams respectively, and Anthony is on the college’s dance team.

“My teammate Sandra Mason introduced me to the Sullivan Foundation, and the whole concept of what it has to offer. You learn a lot about leadership and how to grow as an individual,” Tillery said. “It prepares you for life after college and shows you how to make an impact in your community.”

Carey was also inspired to join the Sullivan Foundation by his former teammates Jaylin Stewart-Cooper ’24 and Timon Jones ’24, Business Administration majors and men’s basketball players who were also Sullivan Fellows throughout their time at Lees-McRae.

“Seeing some of my teammates do it last year and seeing the success they had in their businesses and stuff, I felt like I could use this opportunity,” Carey, who has goals of owning his own business, said.

When she joined the dance team and participated in a fundraiser for the local YMCA organized by senior Special Education major, dance team captain, and Sullivan Fellow Beatrice Adams, Anthony also became interested in joining the program.

Anthony said she is invested in making a change in the local outdoor industry and hopes to build upon the diversity initiatives of Black Folks Camp Too, an Asheville-based business that seeks to “increase diversity in the outdoor industry by making it easier, more interesting, and more fun for folks to go camping.” She believes that her time as a Sullivan Fellow will give her the tools she needs to achieve those goals, rather than just dreaming about them.

“I have a big emphasis on community, and especially being around people who are interested in being positive and contributing. Hearing about what other people are passionate about and what they’re into is inspiring,” Anthony said. “Knowing that my ideas are more than ideas, that they’re actionable, is important. Being a Sullivan Fellow is giving me more confidence to go out and make positive change, and not being afraid to do so, because I have confidence that I can make a change and it’s not just some big idea.”