Filling A Gap in Nursing

A CampusRN Scholarship Program finalist for the South Central region:

Born in southeast Louisiana and the second of ten children, I have been a caregiver all of my life. I graduated from high school at the age of 16 and had no clue as to what I wanted to do with my career. I took jobs working in fast food restaurants and such but was never satisfied. When I turned 18, I took a job in a long-term care facility for the mentally retarded as a nursing assistant. When I went to work I realized that taking care of people made me feel good about myself at the end of the day. I wanted to do more in the healthcare field.

I completed my LVN in 1991 in Hammond, Louisiana and my Associate Degree in Nursing in 1995 in San Antonio, TX. I worked as a staff nurse at the VA in San Antonio and loved what I was doing, taking care of patients. I obtained a job as the patient educator at the Spinal Cord Injury Center within the VA hospital. Once in the educator position, I knew that I was destined to be an educator. I began working towards a Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing. In the meantime I moved from San Antonio, TX to Galveston, TX.

I obtained my BSN in 2003 while working at the University of Texas Medical Branch. Also while at UTMB, I was a member of the Stroke Alert Committee, Pain Committee and Skin Committee. I was nominated by my peers and won The Staff Nurse Award for Excellence in Spinal Cord Injury Nursing in September of 2003. I was ecstatic; there is no greater honor than to be nominated by your peers. I applied and was accepted into the BSN- PhD program at UTMB in 2006.

I am an active member of the Association for Rehabilitation Nurses (ARN) and a Certified Rehabilitation Registered Nurse (CRRN). I am a member of the American Nurses Association (ANA) and the Texas Nurses Association (TNA). I am currently the Vice President for TNA District 6. I am a member of Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Honor Society for Nursing, Alpha Delta Chapter and currently hold the position of Vice President for the Alpha Delta Chapter. I am an active volunteer for the American Red Cross. I volunteer as a nurse for community events as well as the Disaster Assessment Team (DAT).

My goal is to obtain a PhD in Nursing from UTMB and teach in the field of nursing. One of the identified reasons for the nurse shortage is lack of qualified nursing instructors. I would like to be able to partially fill this gap. I believe that I am an excellent candidate for a scholarship. I am a full time student with excellent academic standing in addition to being a part-time clinical instructor. A scholarship would tremendously assist in reducing financial demands providing more time to focus on studies. In addition, I will be able to complete my educational goal sooner and give back to the profession of nursing and community by helping create nurses for the future.


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