The Michael Bright White Bicentennial Scholarship promotes better communication, because for some people, a simple conversation is not as easy as it seems. Debi Acevedo (Curry ’19) and Emily Clay (Curry ’19) chose to major in speech communication disorders so they could help others express themselves. Michael B. White (Col ’81), a New Orleans native, was born deaf due to complications at birth. That’s why he and his wife, Virginia, created the Michael Bright White Bicentennial Scholarship to support undergraduate students who are deaf or planning to work with deaf children—as well as students from Louisiana.

When White was in his youth, his family established the Bright School for the Deaf in New Orleans to assist with his speech and language development. White graduated from the College of Arts & Sciences with a bachelor’s degree in economics. He has since achieved success with private investment and real estate management companies. The scholarship he and his wife created will allow Debi and Emily to focus on their studies and graduate school plans, not on their finances. And with UVA matching all qualifying gifts to the Bicentennial Scholars Fund, the Whites’ support sends a clear message with twice the power—scholarships change lives.