1 scholarship connects 2 Tar Heels across 50 years
Pharmacy students Kassidy Johnson and Dan Dawson both benefited from the Fonnie Jackson Andrews scholarship.
When the Fonnie Jackson Andrews scholarship was first awarded to a Carolina pharmacy student 50 years ago, it was only $1,000.
But the scholarship has grown immensely in financial benefit since its inception. The stories of two recipients, one in 2024 and one in 1975, show its impact over 50 years and for the future.
Shaping her experience
In March, second-year Doctor of Pharmacy student Kassidy Johnson was lying in a hospital bed, unable to speak or walk because of a severe concussion caused by a car crash. While she recovered, she found a new level of support from her peers and professors at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy.
“The professors were very approachable. They moved their schedules around so I could come in to take the tests or take tests online,” Johnson said. “They were very understanding, and I could tell that they just really cared about me.”
Though she still faces months of rehab, Johnson’s grit and determination got her caught up on her studies. She’s now back in the classroom ready to take on the remainder of her training, showing the tenacity that helped her earn the Fonnie Jackson Andrews scholarship in fall 2024.
The scholarship is one of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s signature Blouin scholars program awards. It will cover Johnson’s tuition for all four years of the program, an international rotation with the Global Pharmacy Scholars program in her fourth year, and professional development opportunities throughout her time at the school.
“This scholarship has freed me so that I do not have to work while I’m going through this program,” she said.
Johnson practiced as a doula before pharmacy school, so she is interested in learning more about options in obstetrics, pediatrics or neonatology. “We have two faculty members that we can go to for, really, anything. The scholarship has really shaped my experience here as a whole.”
Setting up sustainable income
Dan Dalton ’76 ’80 (MS) was the very first recipient of the Fonnie Jackson Andrews award in 1975. A first-generation college student putting himself through pharmacy school on the work-study program, Dalton used the award to set up a sustainable income as a photographer to pay for the rest of his education.
Dalton spent the funds at Foister’s Camera Store on Franklin Street, augmenting and upgrading his photography equipment. Throughout his time at UNC, he photographed events and special functions for the school as well as student organizations, fraternities and sororities — even wedding photos for his classmates.
“Being creative helped me make connections that created ideas,” Dalton said. “That same creativity and curiosity, amplified over various personal and professional moments throughout my post-college experience, led to the culmination of being recruited back to my alma mater 27 years later.”
In 2007, Dalton played a pivotal part in launching, and later expanding, the UNC Hemophilia Treatment Center Pharmacy. He continued this work for 15 years, guiding and managing a program that now covers not only the University’s center, but also the four other federally recognized hemophilia treatment centers in North Carolina.
After a long career of varying roles in pharmacy, Dalton now does consulting work. He’s also still practicing photography, recently venturing into videography.
Johnson and Dalton are connected across five decades by the Fonnie Jackson Andrews scholarship, an award that has grown in worth and impact. Scholarships like this one are made possible thanks to the generous support of donors. If you would like to support PharmD student scholarships, reach out to Regina Craven, PharmD program director of development, at cravenra@unc.edu.
