Dr. Tanya Smith Brice Rising Star Scholarship
The Abilene Housing Authority (AHA) Dr. Tanya Smith Brice Rising Star Scholarship was created for AHA High School Seniors who have a desire to further their education but lack adequate financial means to accomplish this goal, and to inspire these individuals to find meaningful careers, earn a living wage, and progress toward becoming economically self-sufficient.
Dr. Brice served on the AHA Board for four years, and served as board chair for three years. She was AHA's first board chair as AHA transitioned from a department of the City of Abilene to a stand-alone Public Housing Authority in 2008. Dr. Brice was instrumental in growing the Family Self-Sufficiency Program from five participants in 2008 to 105 in 2025!
Dr. Tanya Smith Brice is the President and Senior Consultant of Albert Lehmon and Associates, LLC where she provides consultation to community organizations, religious institutions, and educational institutions on organizational effectiveness, programmatic accreditation, and executive leadership development. She is the former Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, Washington. Prior to moving to Washington State, she served as Vice President of Education at the Council on Social Work Education in Alexandria, VA. Dr. Smith Brice has also served as Dean of the College of Professional Studies at Bowie State University in Bowie, MD and Dean of the School of (Education) Health and Human Services at Benedict College in Columbia, SC. She has served on the faculties of the University of South Carolina (Columbia, SC), Abilene Christian University (Abilene, TX), and Baylor University (Waco, TX).
Dr. Smith Brice’s research centers on addressing issues of structural violence specifically as it relates to the impact of those structures on African American people. Her publications focus on the development of the social welfare system by African American women for African American children and documents structural barriers to African American families.
Dr. Smith Brice has taught and lectured all over the USA, as well as in the countries of Ghana, Sweden, Uganda, Colombia, and the Republic of Moldova. A native of Greenville, South Carolina, Dr. Smith Brice earned a PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an MSW from the University of South Carolina, and a BSW from South Carolina State University.
Dr. Smith Brice has been recognized as the 2021 Distinguished Alumni of the Year, School of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2022, she was inducted as a Distinguished Scholar Fellow into the National Academies of Practice in Social Work. The Scholarship funds may only be used to cover unmet student needs directly related to tuition, student fees, books, school supplies or other pre-approved direct educational expenses on a case-by-case basis.
Eligibility
- Graduating high school senior
- Currently residing in Abilene Housing Authority Public Housing or HCV-assisted housing