Harold ‘Doc’ Martin Scholarship continues impacting students

Norwich University’s history is filled with impressive figures. One of them is Harold ‘Doc’ Martin “Class of 1920”, the University’s first African American cadet and namesake of the Harold ‘Doc’ Martin Scholarship. The scholarship was founded in 2021 and has quickly found success among a strong support system. This year’s Harold ‘Doc’ Martin Scholarship Benefit Dinner hosted nearly 250 attendees, raised $120,000, and welcomed several members of the Martin family, Maj Gen Cedric George, USAF (Ret), and Tuskegee Airman BG Enoch ‘Woody’ Woodhouse H’23, among others.

“I’m very thankful to receive it, it has helped me a lot. It helped me pay some of my classes, and I just knew that it was a setup for a journey unlike any other.”

C/1LT Jabari Pinkney ’25 and Imari Milton ’26 are two of the students receiving this scholarship. “It feels great that I am able to walk in his footsteps,” says Pinkney, who wrestles in addition to his Corps responsibilities. “He definitely went through the rougher part of getting to Norwich, becoming a cadet, and being a great role model for the community.”

Milton is a first-generation college student, football player, and wrestler. “I’m very thankful to receive it, it has helped me a lot,” he says. “It helped me pay some of my classes, and I just knew that it was a setup for a journey unlike any other.”

While both are kept busy with athletics, they realize that Norwich affords an opportunity to elevate yourself. Pinkney studies computer security and information with a focus in forensics and hopes to become a CNO developer. “It’s about these tools to break into things, unlike the networking side,” he says. “I would be focusing on breaking into networks and diagnosing what’s happening – reverse engineering, if was to put it shortly.”

As a civilian student-athlete, Milton recognizes the opportunities at Norwich benefit everyone. “Most of my football teammates are in the Corps, and it’s a much different atmosphere – but I know that I can do anything I put my mind to,” he says. Coming to Northfield from Miramar, Fla., Milton saw a chance to chase his dreams and set himself up for the rest of his life. “Norwich is more than a place of learning, it’s a community that nurtures leadership and builds character in the person.”