“UCAP saved my life.” Kiyara “Kiki” Robinson delivers this statement with a laugh, but she’s serious about the impact Northern Kentucky University’s University Connect and Persist (UCAP) program has had on her educational experience. 

A social work major driven to help people through difficulties like those she’s experienced, the freshman first-generation student dreams of attaining her bachelor’s degree to become a mental health professional at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. But not long ago, Robinson sat with advisor Deborah Henry looking at an account hold standing between her and another semester of college—and her dream. 

“We were trying to figure out ways for me to pay my tuition, because I was already paying out of pocket,” says Robinson. “I was at about $3,000.” Like many NKU students, Robinson balances work with a full-time class load, but, with necessary life expenses and a finite amount of time to work, she just didn’t have the $800 balance payment needed to register for another semester of college. That’s when Henry told Robinson to go to UCAP.

“At first I didn’t want to go,” says Robinson. “I don’t like asking for help, and I felt weird about walking in there.” But Henry was adamant about the program—UCAP is dedicated to helping students through challenges that threaten college completion—so she paid the office a visit. There she met with associate director LaNighta Reid who mentioned the Jackman scholarship, which Robinson applied for and was awarded.

“I went to make my cart for my classes—honestly I thought I couldn’t register," Robinson says. “But then it said that my hold was off, and I started crying. It was perfect timing. I knew that I was not going to be able to get the rest of the $800 that fast.”

For Jason and Amy Jackman, benefactors behind the award, helping students like Robinson is what it’s all about. "A lot of the time, just for $500 or a couple thousand dollars, these kids would drop out of school,” says Jason. “That just seemed crazy to me.” So he and Amy established the Jackman Scholarship to provide funds to freshmen students who were at risk of leaving school with debt and no degree. The award is an ongoing connection between the Jackmans and Robinson, too, providing incremental funds for subsequent semesters to ensure she and other recipients of the award can persist in higher education.

Jason cites his 15-year involvement with NKU as opening his eyes to the power of higher education, saying, “I’ve grown a passion for catalytic education and the role a degree can play in changing the trajectory of students’ lives.” For Amy, though, the scholarship a personal matter. “I can relate to those students, because I’m the first person in my family to graduate with a degree,” she says. “I really like the support that the UCAP program and the university offer these students.”

Robinson is deeply thankful for this support, which has allowed her to continue learning at her new university home. “I just feel like I can be myself at NKU,” she says. “I’m just so, so grateful for the opportunity to have this scholarship and for helping me financially.”