Three UAB School of Nursing students were selected by the Birmingham Black Nurses Association as 2013 scholarship recipients. The students were recognized for their perseverance and dedication to their academic goals. They were honored at the Scholarship and Legends in White Gala held at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham on Nov. 2.
Everett L. Harris, an undergraduate student, serves as a mentor in the UAB Blazer Male Excellence Network program and the UAB School of Nursing Enrichment Academy for Nursing Success. Harris has spent the past three summers interning in the INROADS program at UAB Hospital. In the program, Harris is able to gain hands-on experience caring for cardiovascular surgical patients. When Harris graduates, he plans to work in cardiovascular nursing.
In addition to her studies at UAB, Juanita Jones, an undergraduate student, is a member of the Young Women’s Initiative of the AME Church, where she was instrumental in suggesting the start of a health ministry. She participates in community-based activities, including Jeans for Released Incarcerated Women and The Spirit of Luke Missions. She is a student representative on the executive board of BBNA and has been accepted into the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. She would like to pursue her doctor of nursing practice in acute adult and emergency care and open a clinic in her hometown of Hurtsboro and later expand to other small towns in an effort to address health care access disparities in Alabama’s Black Belt.
Thomas Sargent, a student in the Accelerated Master of Nursing Program, has been active in a number of college organizations and is a member of the UAB School of Nursing Graduate Nursing Student Association. He has also served as the president, vice president, treasurer and program chair in organizations such as the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society and National Society of Black Engineers. He has worked in mental health facilities and is especially passionate about working with adolescents with behavior and chemical dependence problems. He plans to continue his education in the mental health nurse practitioner program. The Birmingham Black Nurses Association Inc. is a chapter of the National Black Nurses Association. The National Black Nurses Association’s mission is to represent and provide a forum for black nurses to advocate for and implement strategies to ensure access to the highest quality of health care for persons of color.
They were honored at the Scholarship and Legends in White Gala held at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham on Nov. 2.