As an African American woman, I understand what it is like to be disadvantaged and grow up in a community with limited access to quality healthcare for low-income families. I grew up at a time where no one was fighting for the vulnerable populations in my area. I didn’t have a healthcare leader or role model who I could relate to and trust they had my best interest at heart. I want to be the kind of leader I desperately needed then, for the next generation. Penn Nursing has a legacy of promoting health equity across a diverse population. With the knowledge, I will gain from my courses and community involvement at Penn Nursing I will graduate with the tools to continue to fight for change and bridge the gaps in healthcare disparities. The racial disparities in reproductive health in this country require immediate attention. Black infants in America are twice as likely to die compared to white infants. Black mothers are dying at a rate of 3-4 times higher than that of white women. This is in part due to the unconscious bias against black women in society. The tendency for black women’s pleas for medical attention to go ignored. As well as dismissing the healthcare needs for pregnant and postpartum black mothers. As of 2020, only 6.8% of all midwives in America are black and this is not representative of our citizens of color. We desperately need to increase the number of black midwives in this country. We need healthcare leaders who share common bonds and understand the needs of people of color. We need people in the healthcare field like me that are advocating for women and children who aren’t being heard. Justice is ensuring everyone gets the care they deserve, justice is equality. As a healthcare leader, I will be in a position to offer quality patient-centered care with evidence-based practices to all the diverse members of my community. I will be at the front lines demanding policy changes to help break the connection between income, race, or sexual orientation and quality of care because everyone deserves top-quality healthcare and providers who truly care about them. I am a qualified candidate for this scholarship award because I am in good standing with a premier nursing institution. The funds will go towards school and allow me to focus on my studies and not my financial hardships. Getting into this program was one of the biggest accomplishments in my life and I need financial support in order to continue my dreams.

On paper, my academic journey can be quite hard to understand and may seem chaotic and sporadic. My academic career thus far is a true testament to my resilience. I attended ITT Techs nursing program with the hopes of getting my RN license, then my BSN and finally my nurse practitioner license. After three rigorous years of clinical rotations and examinations, I had finally reached the semester of my senior practicum, and the school shut down permanently. At first, I was devastated, having spent so much time, money and effort for it to all disappear was a tough pill to swallow. I knew I could handle this situation one of two ways, allow it to deter me from my aspirations in life or let it push me to work harder. I chose the latter. When one door closes another one opens. I believe the end of my nursing education at ITT tech allowed me to receive my education at a more reputable school that is more tailored to my needs to become a Woman’s Health Nurse Practitioner. Since the cessation of my nursing program, I have attended Azusa Pacific’s Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management. This degree allows me to learn about the science behind health and the human body as well as practical information on things such as insurance policies, ethical decision-making, and financial management that any healthcare leader can utilize. For example, in the last term, I learned about microorganisms and how they contribute to health and disease such as antibiotics and bacterial infections. This course expanded my knowledge of the germ theory of disease as I ran my tests in the lab to determine the presence of microorganisms and understand their properties. During the same term, I also took a course that allowed me to understand the background and history of insurance companies and healthcare reform. Knowing how the system got to be the way it gives much insight into the direction we are heading and what steps need to be made to expand healthcare coverage and access to everyone. This degree allowed me to gain all the knowledge from a Bachelor of Science degree; anatomy, biology, psychology, chemistry, physics, etc, which are necessary to apply to medical school. It also gave me knowledge of the inner workings of the healthcare system and prepared me to be a leader in the field. While my path may have changed my passions and dreams have remained intact. Since I was a child, feeling helpless and frustrated, watching the social injustices and hardships my family faced being African Americans in this country, on top of the problems we were dealing with internally, I knew I was destined to help women and children. I want to be a healing hand, a listening ear, and a comforting touch to those who need my help, especially women and children who are systematically disadvantaged on several levels in our current society. While there have been tremendous improvements toward social equality in our nation, we still have a long way to go and need people in the healthcare field like me that are advocating for women and children who aren’t being heard. We need people in the field, making suggestions and decisions who truly understand the importance of their role and have a genuine passion for the success and well-being of every woman and child.

As a Penn Nursing graduate, I will have the opportunity to reach my ultimate goal of becoming a Certified Nurse Midwife. A midwife is truly a leader in the field of women’s health and requires an adaptable, resilient, passionate person to carry out the duties and responsibilities of the job. I will continue Penn Nursing’s legacy of raising awareness of the needs of a diverse population. I will help educate the community and work directly with teaching and community hospitals to promote changes that benefit the patients and the population as a whole. Educating women on healthy lifestyles, family planning, and safe empowered deliveries can make a large impact on the community as a whole. As an African American woman, I understand what it is like to be disadvantaged and grow up in a community with limited access to quality healthcare for low-income families. I grew up at a time where no one was fighting for the vulnerable populations in my area. I didn’t have a healthcare leader or role model who I could relate to and trust they had my best interest at heart. I want to be the kind of leader I desperately needed then, for the next generation. Penn Nursing has a legacy of promoting health equity across a diverse population. With the knowledge, I will gain from my courses and community involvement at Penn Nursing I will graduate with the tools to continue to fight for change and bridge the gaps in healthcare disparities. The racial disparities in reproductive health in this country require immediate attention. Black infants in America are twice as likely to die compared to white infants. Black mothers are dying at a rate of 3-4 times higher than that of white women. This is in part due to the unconscious bias against black women in society. The tendency for black women’s pleas for medical attention to go ignored. As well as dismissing the healthcare needs for pregnant and postpartum black mothers. As of 2020, only 6.8% of all midwives in America are black and this is not representative of our citizens of color. We desperately need to increase the number of black midwives in this country. We need healthcare leaders who share common bonds and understand the needs of people of color. We need people in the healthcare field like me that are advocating for women and children who aren’t being heard. Justice is ensuring everyone gets the care they deserve, justice is equality. As a healthcare leader, I will be in a position to offer quality patient-centered care with evidence-based practices to all the diverse members of my community. I will be at the front lines demanding policy changes to help break the connection between income, race, or sexual orientation and quality of care because everyone deserves top-quality healthcare and providers who truly care about them.