FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Feb. 10, 2024 

Contact: 
Leha Byrd 
ECSU Communications and Marketing       
Email or 252-335-8745     
 

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. (Feb. 10, 2024) - Elizabeth City State University (ECSU) will compete in the National Qualifying Tournament of the 35th Honda Campus All-Star Challenge (HCASC) on Saturday, Feb. 10 at Norfolk State University. The day-long competition is America’s premier academic competition for historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) students. Four student teams will face off in head-to-head competition to quickly answer questions about history, science, literature, religion, math, the arts, pop culture, and sports. 

ECSU is one of 64 teams competing for institutional grants from Honda and a spot in the HCASC National Championship Tournament taking place on the American Honda corporate campus in Torrance, Calif., April 6-10, 2024. Four ECSU students make up the Vikings’ team: 

  • Makaylah Hathaway ’24  
  • Jared Page ‘25 
  • Cameron Sheard ‘24 
  • Heaven Brown ‘25 

ECSU Assistant Professor Kim Scott is the group’s coach. 

“Our students have worked very hard to get to this point,” she said. 

HCASC is a year-round program celebrating Black excellence and showcasing the academic talents of top HBCU students from across the country. HCASC challenges students to expand their scope of knowledge on a wide range of topics while also helping to develop their leadership and collaboration skills. With the opportunity to compete against students from other HBCUs, participants network, build camaraderie and gain mentorship opportunities with HCASC alumni.  

This year, Honda will provide more than $500,000 in institutional grants to the participating HBCUs with many of the schools utilizing the grants to fund student scholarships. More than 170,000 scholars have competed in HCASC since the academic tournament was established in 1989. 

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Elizabeth City State University provides students with a high-quality, affordable education as one of North Carolina’s leading four-year public institutions that is part of the University of North Carolina System. ECSU develops leaders who are courageous, resilient, and empowered through excellent student-centered, experiential learning. We offer baccalaureate, professional, and master’s degrees across a wide variety of interests. Excellence is the standard at Elizabeth City State University – success is our legacy. Come to Discover. Leave to Conquer. Visit www.ecsu.edu.