Zevy Ivory, a senior biology major and Lions women’s basketball forward, was awarded the PRIDE Scholarship by the Positive Role-models Involved in the Development of Excellence (PRIDE) organization.
The purpose of the PRIDE Scholarship is to help those Lady Lions who have completed their years of eligibility on the court and have one to two semesters left to attain their degree. It provides tuition, course-related fees and room and board.
Ivory is grateful to have been given this opportunity and mentioned how important a college degree is to her,. She has two semesters left before graduating and plans to apply to physical therapy school.
“I feel honored that I was given the opportunity to be accepted for this scholarship because, without it, I would have to pay for school,” said Ivory. “Because what are you gonna do with your life? You need to provide for you and your family, and having a college degree makes life easier for you when you become a more mature adult.”
Ivory is a 5A state champion and MVP from Southwood High School in Shreveport, La. One of the first times Ivory was recognized by Southeastern was four years ago during the Top 28 championship game, when she was a senior at Southwood.
“We started recruiting her, and she played for us for the past four years and this is her last year of school left, even though she has played her four years of basketball,” said Jones.
The PRIDE organization acts as the Southeastern Lady Lion basketball team’s mentoring and support organization. The organization was established in 2005 by head coach Lori Davis Jones, former Student Affairs Vice President Dr. Patsy Causey, athletics director assistant Chris Bentley and Director of Leadership Development and Student Activities Jackie Dale Thomas.
“We created it a few years back for a mentor protegé program where I hooked up all my players with a female in the community, whether it was a teacher, nurse, doctor, etc.,” said Jones.
This group gives the Lady Lions a support structure outside of the basketball team.
“It’s a network to kind of be a home away from home for those players who might be far away from home to give them another network besides their coaches and each other so that they can reach out and grow a little bit,” said Jones.
According to an Aug. 27 Athletics Media Relations press release, more than $14,000 was awarded through the scholarship to three student-athletes. The first Lady Lion to receive a the scholarship did so in 2007. In 2009 there were two awardees, but this year, Ivory is the only recipient.
“Our goal is to make sure that we can take care of each Lady Lion based off the fact that they have given years of their blood, sweat and tears to the program,” said Jones. “We want to make sure that they get to walk across that stage and shake the president’s hand.”
For more information on PRIDE or the PRIDE Scholarship, contact Patsy Causey via phone at 985-345-8133.