Black Nurse Magic Scholarship

Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” And while I don’t plan on changing the world in its entirety, education is my most powerful weapon. As a young girl, I was even shyer than I am now. Growing up with a twin sheltered me from the world of being on my own. Instead of building relationships by myself, I had a built-in best friend by my side, and although it was a convenient advantage, it was also a hindrance. My sister is an extroverted version of myself. She never had a problem initiating conversations with strangers, so I had a hard time talking with others on my own. I made myself believe it was inconsequential to make connections with other people because all I had ever known was, she and I; me and her. This all changed after my desire to become independent outweighed my inclination to be in my sister's shadow and I began my individualistic voyage into self-reliance. My journey led me into becoming a cheerleader. Cheerleading changed my life. I became interested in cheerleading when I was eight years old, but I didn’t attempt the sport until I was eleven. I convinced my sister to join me in trying out for the level one competitive team at Apex Cheer & Athletics since I was too shy to try out by myself. I took tumbling classes before trying out because I wanted to be good enough to make one of the teams. Surprisingly, I found tumbling quite easy and quickly moved from level one to level two. My confidence in myself grew immensely, and I even started helping my sister learn basic skills. We tried out for level one, and both were placed on a level two competitive team. Being on an All-star team was extremely challenging, yet it taught me to grow a backbone. Everyone on the team was intimidating and hard-working, not only because they wanted to be the best, for themselves, but for the team as well. Because All-star cheer was so tedious, I grew up in the gym. My teammates saw me at my best and my worst, and I saw them the same. Our team was a family, and our gym was a community, and together were all passionately in love with the sport. I enjoy my “new” self, and I am more determined than ever to help others be their best. I am determined, focused, and eager to excel in school, my career, relationships, and life. I am shy and soft-spoken but also a “self-starter” and very adept at tracking down information when needed, multi-tasking, making decisions easily, giving good suggestions for solving problems, setting realistic goals, thinking critically, and motivating others to succeed. Evidence of my abilities is seen in my grade point average (3.98), participation in school cheer and American Sign Language Honor Society, volunteer, coaching job at Olympia Gymnastics and Tumbling, and caretaking responsibilities (I assist my grandmother (81 years old) and uncle (60-years old with an Intellectual Disability) (grocery shopping, getting meals, and taking them to doctor/dentist appointments)). I am compassionate about helping others, and I believe having good mental and physical health enables us to reach our fullest potential. I know my goal to become a registered nurse and eventually, a psychiatric nurse practitioner or Nurse Anesthetist will provide me the opportunity to give back to others while assisting them with their mental and physical health needs. I deserve this scholarship because I have the passion and determination to become a trusted member of the nursing community. I deserve this scholarship because I will continue to uphold Black excellence and will continue to contribute to the rise of Black nurses, doctors, and psychiatrists in the medical field. With my education, I can help children and adults get the treatment they need, giving them the best chance at finding their success. You’re not just helping me get through college at Prairie View A&M University. You’re improving the quality of life for countless families to come. I appreciate your consideration. Thank you for helping me reach my goals.

My first semester of nursing school at Prairie View A&M University was the most tremendous hardship I have had to endure yet. It was a wake-up call that, unfortunately, nursing school would not be as easy as I had hoped for. Nevertheless, I had to earn my B.S.N. My first semester started in the summer of 2020. During the summer semester, I took Pathophysiology and an elective nursing course. I took these courses in the summer to ease myself into nursing school for the fall; however, taking Pathophysiology came with trials and tribulations. Since summer semesters are shorter than the fall or spring, the information I had to learn was condensed to fit the short amount of time we were provided in the summer. Another consequence of this is that the class hours were long, and we had to complete an exam every other week. In Pre-Nursing, I was accustomed to anywhere between a 60-minute lecture and a two-hour lecture. However, when I received my schedule for the summer, I received a huge surprise. I now had to sit through lectures for four hours straight! Going through that was mentally exhausting. In addition, right after learning a new topic that week, we were scheduled to take an exam the following week. It was definitely a trial. I had to make a plethora of adjustments. I had to adjust my engagement in lectures, which included being more active in discussions. I had to change the way I took notes and increase the amount of time I had to study outside of class. I also had to make adjustments to my study environment. Sadly while I was making these adjustments, it was already time for the first exam. I had an intense fear about whether or not if I would succeed or not on my first exam. I was still in the middle of making my adjustments to do exceptionally well on my exams. It did not help that I was and still am the type of person to be very critical of myself, so failing this exam would be a recipe for disaster. All I could do was put in the work by studying 10 hours a day and making sure I prayed to God that I would do well on my exam. Exam day arrived, and to say the least, it was far from exciting. Instead, I was nervous, anxious, and scared, which was not a good combination of emotions before an exam. However, after taking the exam, it felt as if a weight lifted off my shoulders, and I could somewhat relax for the day. My professor shortly after released the grades. Thus, my first triumph of nursing school was receiving a B for my first pathophysiology exam. Sadly, I had some setbacks after the first exam. For the following two exams, I received C's. Finally, for the fourth exam, I received a B with some assistance from a classmate on study techniques. The hardest part was that I could not pinpoint how to take these exams or what type of material my professor would question us on. Moreover, there was a great deal of pressure for the final exam to receive an A in the course. I had to get at least a 90 on the final exam. To ensure the success of my goal, I implemented various studying methods. This included taking more detailed notes, using YouTube as a resource to study specific topics, and using flashcards to help me retain and understand what we were learning. I also made sure to pray daily because, with God, anything is possible. When the time came to take my final exam, all those feelings from the first exam begin to hit me like a mighty wind. I had to make sure I got myself together because all of these feelings would hurt my performance. So, I got myself together and pushed through. Thankfully through the grace of God, I received an A. Although it was only my first semester of nursing school, it was a moment in my life in which I knew I wanted to be a nurse and that I needed to obtain my degree.

In the first semester of my junior year of high school, my mother passed away unexpectedly and it crushed me. She was my best friend and ultimate motivator and in the blink of an eye, I lost it. "Ma, I have your purse" was the last thing I said to my mom, but I had so much more. I didn't get the chance to say goodbye and that affected me for months after she had passed. I went through a deep depression after she died and I contemplated suicide because my days were filled with crying myself to sleep. My mom and I were like two peas in a pod. I went everywhere with her and she was the parent I could do almost anything in front of. Months before she passed, she told me when she did pass, to move on my life and to live it for the Lord. In the months after her death, it was hard to live that out, because I couldn't grasp the idea that she did die. After realizing that I had lost hope in everything, I turned to the Lord one night, and my life changed forever. It was the Lord who brought me out of that trial. My mom always encouraged me to get to know God for myself, but the need for that didn't kick in until after her passing. I didn't realize my need for him until after my mom died. To be completely honest, keeping God first helped me more than I thought it would. I stayed on track in school. I didn't hang out with the wrong crowd because I kept in constant contact with the Lord. If I was struggling with sadness or frustration, I'd talk to my dad or stepmom about it and they always led me back on the right track. My family was always there as my support and always touching base with them kept me focused on my end goal. I have constant motivation from my mom and the rest of my family to keep pushing through regardless of the trials. I ended up bouncing back in school in the second semester of my junior year. I had a 4.0 GPA for the first time in high school and continued to do so in my senior year. I'm currently attending a community college due to the pandemic, but I'm still pushing a 4.0 there as well. I've been accepted to Tuskegee University where I plan to transfer in the Fall of this year. I owe all of that to the Lord and what he's allowed me to go through. I work harder and I always have a goal I'm trying to meet, whether it be academic or something I want to do in my life. At Tuskegee, I plan to go into their Nursing program and continue the nursing legacy on my mom's side of the family. My mom showed that I can truly do all things through Christ who strengthens me and I will hold on to that until my last breath.