ROCK HILL, S.C. — Winthrop University Alumni Awards celebrated men and women for their professional achievements on Saturday, October 9, 2021. The 2021 recipients included:
Sheila McMillan, class of ’73, received the Mary Mildred Sullivan Award honoring alumna for selfless dedication of time, energy and talent in service to others. McMillan has championed civil rights since the 1960s and her resume includes a list of firsts: she was in one of the first integration classes at her high school, at Winthrop and at UNC-Charlotte; first Black Senate attorney for the SC Legislature, first female president of the SC Black Lawyers Association
Dick McCoy, class on ’04, received the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award honoring alumnus for selfless dedication of time, energy and talent in service to others. McCoy is a retired pediatric physician in Rock Hill and an adjunct professor at Winthrop and Pfeiffer University in Charlotte. In 2017, McCoy and his wife established the Richard L and Jan Shaw McCoy Endowed Scholarship to provide financial support to students studying healthcare administration at Winthrop.
Isaiah Venning, classes of ’95 and ’00, received the Alumni Distinguished Service Award for significant contributions to the quality of life in the community. Venning serves as an alumni representative on Winthrop’s Board of Trustees and on Rock Hill’s Community Relations Council. On the council, Venning promotes respect for, appreciation of and understanding of diversity in the community. He also is a member of the Martin Luther King Jr Interfaith Prayer Breakfast, the Black History Program and National Race Equality Week committees.
Gregg Davis, class of ’92, received the Alumni Professional Achievement Award recognizing significant contributions to his professional field while exemplifying high moral and business ethics. Davis is the senior director of systems engineering at Curative, Inc. – a biotech startup that focuses on COVID-19 testing. His work has helped build best practices for capacity and scaling for testing across the US. Davis has most recently worked with George Washington University’s COVID response committee and in the lab developing diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
Chelsea Brown, class of ’14, received the Outstanding Young Alumni Award, given to those age 35 or younger. She is the Corporate Purpose Specialist for Nasdaq and works to increase engagement and partnerships between non-profit and profit organizations. Brown established a scholarship in her name at Winthrop for students in South Carolina or of The SEED School of Maryland planning to study mass communications at Winthrop.
Learn more about these distinguished alumni and about Winthrop University at winthrop.edu
