My goals for my medical career and the importance of increasing racial diversity in healthcare go hand in hand. Growing up as a little black girl in a small town, we weren't told to be anything but a doctor, nurse, or to get a sports scholarship. Most of the people in my town went on to be CNA and that was as far as they got. Often times those things seemed so unachievable as we did not have people around us emulating that. One of my biggest goals in my medical career is to increase the awareness of the many other healthcare careers outside of being a doctor and a nurse that are in dire need of racial diversity. African Americas make up only 3% of diagnostic medical sonographers. That means that a black girl or boy needing an ultrasound will more than likely be taken care of by someone that looks nothing like them. That is what I am trying to change. I want our brown and black babies to know that they have options. I want my two children to know that they are needed in a system that they are often overlooked in. My other goal is to expand sonography programs across the state of Virginia. There are not many schools that offer sonography as a degree of choice (4 community colleges, 1 hospital, 1 university). I believe that more people of color would take more advantage of crossing into these healthcare roles if they had proper access to them at a school closer to their home. I think it is important for an increase in racial diversity in healthcare because we need more black and brown representation. We need people who can truly empathize with us and see things from our perspective, not merely because we are telling them about it but because they have lived it too. We need to address the health disparities associated with racial inequality in healthcare and to decrease implicit bias. This will also boost moral in the trust of people of color by having healthcare providers who look like them and who can relate to them. We simply need to increase racial diversity in healthcare because we deserve to be in these roles. We are hardworking, smart, talented people as a whole and we deserve to occupy these spaces without all of the racial propaganda. We deserve to take up space in a world that does not make room for us. Our children deserve the same privileges of walking through the same doors their white counterparts do. The people before us fought so that we could get an education and be in the rooms that don't want us there or invite us with open arms. It is imperative that this generation steps up and LIVES the change in the healthcare field. We must get the degrees and apply for the jobs in healthcare. We must continue to learn so that we can continue breaking the barriers of racial inequality in the healthcare system. And my goal is to continue doing just that; breaking barriers, making ways for my children and the generations to come, and being the foundation so that they don't have to start from scratch again. I am becoming a diagnostic medical sonographer so that my children will know that this is possible and they won't ever have to look anywhere else but inside their home to be able to see God's plans of a black girl breaking down walls in the healthcare field.

Growing up, my dream career was to be Beyonce'. That slowly changed the older I got and by the time I got to high school, I had no clue what I wanted to do with my life. I had a father who was and still is battling with drug addiction and a mother who was in an emotionally abusive relationship that took most of her attention, so no one was concerned about my life and what I wanted to do with it. I went on to college, changing my major five times until I landed on a criminal justice degree, and it was probably the worst decision ever. I graduated, got a small job as a deputy clerk, and then I got pregnant. And this is when I can look back and realize that nothing that happens in our lives is in vain. Everything has purpose and meaning. Becoming pregnant with my daughter gave me the clarity in life that I needed. My pregnancy with her was tough. It was high risk and I spent a lot of time in ultrasound, scared, afraid and hoping she was okay. I developed a wonderful relationship with my ultrasound tech and during that time, I got to learn a lot about her career. I fell in love. In that moment I knew this is what God was calling me to do....to become an ultrasound tech. However, ten years passed. Proof that the vision that God gives to you may not come to pass at the time it is given. I waited ten whole years to be able to pursue this goal of mine. During that time, I had my daughter, got married, had my son, got divorced, moved from job to job feeling so unfulfilled, and a bunch of other heartbreak, disappointment, and disobedience in between. Then one day while sitting at my big girl corporate job, getting ready to send my 20th email of that day to people that I never got to see, touch, or physically talk to, I realized this was it. I did not want to move to another job that I hated. I did not want to keep merely dreaming about being an ultrasound tech. I went home, said a prayer and a week later I applied for the ultrasound program at Virginia Commonwealth University. I put in my two weeks notice. I had no other job, I hadn't got into the program yet, and I had no clue how I was going to pay for school. I quit in complete faith with only one goal in mind, and that was that I HAD to get into this program and this had to work out for me. I got in the program a month later. I obtained a job a few months after that, that worked perfectly with my school schedule and "mom" schedule. Today, I am in my junior year of my ultrasound program and I am thriving. My goal is to go beyond the scope of getting the degree and becoming certified. I want to become apart of the teaching faculty for sonography programs. I want to create more sonography programs in the state of Virginia because there aren't many. The school that I am attending is the only university with a bachelor's degree for sonography in the state of Virginia. This degree is bigger than me. It is for my kids and the generations to come after me. It is for my family. It is for every patient whose life I will touch in this field.

Ten years ago, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. I spent a lot of time in ultrasound due to a high risk pregnancy. I developed a relationship with the ultrasound tech and really fell in love with watching the screen and asking her questions about the field. From that time on, I dreamed of taking on a career of ultrasound. Time passed, I got married, had another child, got divorced and I felt like I would never really have the time to go back to school to get my degree. Until one day, I was sitting at my desk (at the time I worked for the court system), miserable. Miserable in my career and in the fact that I was behind a desk all day with no client interaction accept through email. It was this day I made up mind to go back to school to become a diagnostic medical sonographer. It was a moment of clarity that working as a compensation analyst was not God's plan for my life. A week later, I put in my two weeks notice, applied to ultrasound school at VCU, and left my job with no other job and no clue how I was going to go to school full time and take care of two children. I didn't even know if I was going to get accepted into the program. I literally left on faith and a prayer. Here I am today, in my junior year of the program, THRIVING. I was blessed with a job that accommodated my school schedule and still allows me to show up for my kids in the way I need too. Why healthcare? I wanted a career that gave me purpose; a career that would make my children proud of me. I wanted a career where I had an opportunity to make a lasting impact on other people while also being a problem solver in the healthcare field. I wanted a career that would allow me to have stability in my home life. A career that would allow me to work full time and mother full time without feeling burned out. Of course I wanted more money as well (because who doesn't). I hope to make a huge impact as a woman in healthcare. To aid in the representation of young black women in the healthcare field as well as in the four percent of black sonographers. I don't want my efforts to just stop at getting the degree and becoming certified. I want to eventually teach other students how to become great sonographers in the field. I want to assist in developing better technology to be able to find pathology quicker and more efficiently. I want to be a form of encouragement for those who are truly going through a tough time. As someone who has experienced poor patient care before, my goal is to give our patients one of the best patient care experiences that they have ever had. I want to be a blueprint for little girls and boys who don't think they can do this. This is much bigger than me. This is for my bloodline. This is for the generations to come after me and I am looking forward to leaving my mark in the healthcare world. Thank you, Briana Callis

I think the attribute I embody the most is definitely daring to take calculated risks. I graduated high school in 2010 and went to college not knowing what I truly wanted to do. So I decided to major in criminal justice because I thought it was "easy". I then graduated college and convinced myself that psychology was what I wanted to do knowing it wasn't and I got my master's degree in 2016. I then found myself in jobs that I never felt fulfilled in that did not offer me good money, time, or peace. During the time of getting my masters I got pregnant with my daughter. A few years after that I got married, built our first home, and had my son. A year after that I went through one of the toughest seasons of my life...MY DIVORCE. During that time, I decided I was going to do some self-discovering. I had worked my way up in the Supreme Court of Virginia but hated my job with a passion. I felt so unfulfilled and like I wasn't making a difference. One day while sitting at my computer, I told myself I was going to go back to school for what I had been wanting to do for the last ten years... SONOGRAPHY. I prayed and prayed and was afraid to even apply because although I had the education, I did not have any background in the medical field. The program itself was a daytime program and I just did not understand how I was going to be able to adjust my schedule to still show up for my kids, work, study, and go to school full time. One day, I clearly heard in my spirit, it's now or never. I put in my two weeks notice at my job, without another job, and I had not gotten accepted into the program as of yet. A week later I got my acceptance letter and I started working again two months after that in a radiation sciences career that had an adjustable schedule and aligned perfectly with my career goals. I say all of this to say this was a calculated risk and a faith move. I did not know how God was going to do it but He did. I quit with no other job, a little saved up, and hope. I haven't missed a bill, my kids haven't gone without, just finished up my first semester and I am living in an answered prayer because I dared to take a calculated risk. I think the attribute I truly need to work on is prioritizing and managing my time. Not just in school, but in general. Between having kids, working two jobs, school, being active in my church, and trying to have some time for myself, I have to say I did a horrible job this year of prioritizing. Granted this was my first semester back in a college classroom as an adult since 2014. I do feel a lot of this semester was me trying to get acclimated to that. I think my plan for improving this attribute is a simple one.... plan ahead of time as much as I can. I need to utilize my planner, my alarm clock, and my calendar. I plan on getting up earlier and getting things done earlier. I plan on meal prepping so that I don't have to spend as much time cooking during the week. I also plan on resting. I was tired last semester and I soon realized how important it was for me to rest when I ended up in the emergency room for passing out. My goal is to take better care of my body. Managing my time has been something that I have struggled with for most of my life. Procrastinating and waiting until the last minute sometimes is the route I choose to go however I think by planning ahead and being more prepared this will help me with procrastinating. Sometimes I think I procrastinate because I have to much to do. I think being able to take some things off of my plate this year is going to be a huge help as well. My goal is to also evaluate what truly needs to be done and what I can hold off on. I am realizing that I truly cannot do it all and the most important things in my life right now are my kids and my degree. So being able to remove everything else off of the table for right now is going to be huge in me resolving this time management issue. Being back in school as an adult learner with two kids has really shown me the importance of time management and prioritizing. I will ensure this gets done!

Being a single mother has so many struggles but so many beautiful moments. I think one of the biggest things that has shaped my educational journey is truly just wanting to make my kids proud. They make me beyond proud every single day so I just want to give that same love back to them. Being an adult learner now while being a single mom has truly increased the need for me to set a better foundation for my children. Not only do I want them to be proud, but I also want them to understand the necessity for education and truly knowing and understanding what they want to do once they graduate high school. Growing up, no one sat me down and talked about the importance of going to school let alone paying for school. It was a decision I had to truly maneuver on my own. I think being a mother but also being back in school as a mother has truly shaped how I want to handle my kids as they grow. Giving them the insight on what they need to do and ensuring that they are excelling in their educational journey. I am currently in school to become a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer. I will be the first in my family. My children will get to watch me put in hard work and dedication and walk that stage in less than 3 years. I will make difficult sacrifices in these next three years but they will all be for the greater good of our lives. And my hopes and prayers are that my children will see me do it and know that they can achieve this too. One of the things I am most looking forward to is being able to assist with younger generations getting into the radiology field. Letting them know that there is so much more in the medical field than being a doctor or a nurse. Giving them the tools and necessary education to be able to make an informed decision at a young age about what they want to do when they get older. Helping them to understand that they can do whatever they put their minds to. I also want to create my own scholarship for non-traditional learners with kids. I want to help another parent who decides that life the way it is just isn't cutting it. And when they make that difficult decision to go back to school to pursue their dreams, my scholarship will be waiting for them.

What I find most challenging about the combination between being an adult student learner and single mother is the lack of time. There seems to not be enough time in the day. I decided to finally go back to school to pursue my degree and career as a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer with two kids (6 and 9) at the age of 33. Between working two jobs to stay afloat on the mortgage and other bills, going to class, studying, still being active in my church, and managing to give enough attention and time to my children, it is tiring. Unfortunately, many medical programs are not created for the adult learning parent who has decided to shift their life and the lives of their children and it is very difficult to completely alter your schedule and still show up in full capacity. I had to quit my full time corporate job to attend school and take a huge pay cut. I now work hourly jobs to sustain the bills and to still be able to show up for my kids in the way I need to. However, the blessing in it is that I am getting the patient and radiology experience I need in these roles. I am dedicated to obtaining this degree but truly obtaining a career that will allow me to have a better work life balance, a career that I love, more money, and a career that my children can be proud of. This scholarship would help me tremendously as paying for school or going into debt to pay for school would not be an issue for me with scholarship money. When I graduated from high school I had no clue what I wanted to do. I had no clue that other jobs in the medical field even existed outside of being a nurse or a doctor. I wasn't educated enough to make an informed decision. This scholarship will not only allow me to pay for school, but this scholarship will allow me to set the tone for my family and the generations after. My kids will be able to see that this is doable no matter what stage of life they are in. I will be able to sit down and have a conversation with my children about their goals as my son already knows he wants to be in the medical field. I will be able to give them the insight they need on making informed decisions about their education and career and I will be able to assist them with more information on getting scholarships and grants which is something I did not have either. This scholarship would assist in also paving the way for my career as a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer. My goal is to become a neuro or cardiac sonographer which currently in the state of Virginia there is a shortage. This scholarship would assist in financially getting me through the program, but also moving me one step closer to being able to make a difference in the medical field all together. I have wanted this for 10 years. I did the work and got into a program as the only adult learner as I am in classes with recent high school graduates. I would be the first Diagnostic Medical Sonographer in my family as well. So this scholarship is going to help me not only pave the way for future generations, but to also break down the barriers within my family as one of the only family members in the medical field. All in all, I would benefit from this scholarship but so would my children, their children, and the patients whose lives I would have the privilege of impacting.

The current challenge that I am facing as a single mom in college is the balance of it all while also having to worry about how I am going to pay for school and my bills. I think us as women, having to choose between elevating ourselves for our children and still being able to be present with all the demands of taking care of the kids and the bills and everything else that comes along is hard. My goal is providing a better life for my children and I, but often times the challenge of money and time play a huge role in being able to do that. What I learned that shaped my passion for this career in Sonography is that we have the power to cultivate the life we want. Is it hard? Absolutely! However, it is important for our kids to see us work through the hard things. I want a career that is flexible, pays well, and that allows me to be independent while still impacting the lives of others. Most importantly, I want a career that makes my children proud and that I can be proud of everyday. I think it's important to have a job that you don't mind getting up for in the morning. I also believe in going after what you believe should be yours. I have wanted this career for about ten years now but was too afraid to pursue as a result of the fear of failure. I also did not want to be in a position where I was feeling like I was putting anything before my kids. I went through a tough divorce that also shaped my understanding of the purpose of having your own. What I learned is that my kids depend on me to be the best version of myself that I can be. Feeling unfulfilled in my current career was not the best version of me. So, I decided to make a change. My long-term goal for this career is to retire from it, but to also work my way up so that I am able to teach other moms in the field of sonography. I want to eventually open up my own ultrasound clinic as well. The field of ultrasound is a predominantly white female field. I am hoping to help break the barriers of that and add to the field by introducing young black girls and boys to this field as well. This was not something we were taught about or even knew existed growing up. I think representation matters and children need to know that there is more to the medical field than just being a doctor or nurse.