My name is Jauron Pruitt, I’m from Anderson, SC, and I’m studying to be a physical therapist. I heard about Denmark Technical College mainly from my mom’s cousin, who used to go here. But before that, I didn’t know about Denmark, and I didn’t know it was an HBCU.

What was appealing about an HBCU to you?

At first, I didn’t really see a need to go to an HBCU, even though my parents and their friends were for it. I just wanted to get a good education, and I knew about the technical colleges near where I grew up, like Tri-County Tech. But I also wanted to get away from my hometown, and once I thought more about Denmark, it seemed like a way to get both a good education and to see something new.

What did you think about technical colleges?

You want to be smart with the options you have. You see people stress about going straight to a four-year college after high school, not knowing what to expect. Taking the two-year route is like a bridge system to get a good feel of what college is really about. And if this is really what you want to do, then you can transfer into that four-year.

Now that you’re at Denmark, what are you enjoying about your experience?

This is really just a land of opportunities. For example, there’s different internships that only want Denmark students. I was like, wow. I’d never heard of anything like that before.

The people are also great. Take Dr. Todd, our president. You actually get to speak with him face-to-face, one-on-one. He’ll stop and talk to you, and you can just go up to him if you see him. He’s just a cool dude.

He was my English teacher during my first semester, and it was cool to see how he teaches. You have open discussions, and he keeps the class engaged. He had us on the edge of our seats, ready to learn.

You’re also vice president of the Student Government Association. What’s motivating you to be involved?

I’d never done student government before, but it’s cool getting to know what students want. We can receive feedback and actually do something about it. For example, the sophomores that were here last year didn’t really enjoy the food, but now, we’re actually able to change up what’s available. I’m learning I really do have a voice here.