Jamie Albright, who is researching teenagers born with HIV, was honored with the Thomas Barnett “Breaking Down Barriers” Scholarship.

An Elon University junior studying the messages that adolescents living with perinatally acquired HIV receive from medical care providers is the recipient of the inaugural Thomas Barnett “Breaking Down Barriers” Scholarship.

Jamie Albright, a human service studies major and Lumen Prize recipient from Charlotte, N.C., received the honor April 26 at the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honor society annual awards program in Whitley Auditorium, where she met with the parents of the award’s namesake.

Barnett died in June 2007 after a lengthy battle with Friedreich’s Ataxia, a rare genetic disorder. The Elon University Honors Fellow and Presidential Scholar had completed much of his studies toward a degree in digital art before his health forced him to withdraw during his senior year.

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