Early in my high school career, I listened to a speaker who stated that by the year 2050, it is estimated that there will be 10 billion people on Earth. If this fact alone wasn’t shocking enough, he continued and posed the one question that has shaped my worldview ever since: “So what are you going to do to help care for, uplift, and inspire all 10 billion of those people?”

I consider myself a person who believes in purpose over passion, and this speech solidified that belief. Prior to this, I spent years bouncing across different fields to find a sense of fulfillment through a career    I could tell you about the effectiveness of Truth Campaigns in the Balkans, the unforeseen dangers of “nuclear stigma” in technology development, the correlation between symptoms of PTSD and traumatic brain injury in recovery, and so much more    until I realized that the work I wanted to do in the world was greater than could be encompassed within a single field. I was inspired to use my education as a stepping stone to contribute to the holistic development of the larger global community.

I spent my time in high school developing this drive through a variety of organizations and programs, including internationally-minded leadership organizations such as the Junior World Affairs Council and Global Encounters, professional research projects with the UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth, and locally-based initiatives such as Operation Compassion and the Early Childhood Development Center. I also cultivated my interest in healthcare through a couple interdisciplinary research projects, specifically focused on the long-term socio-economic impacts of different healthcare development initiatives.

Throughout this, I found meaning in my work. I found inspiration in the concept of development-based societal progress and learned how to use my education as a lens to create the impact I wanted in the communities around me. By pursuing a degree in nursing, I look forward to gaining essential clinical knowledge and experience needed to understand the needs of patients and the field of healthcare and caretaking. Further, I look forward to learning to be a leader in the field of nursing, enabling myself to apply this knowledge on a larger level, and contribute to the development of the global societies through healthcare.

Major
Nursing

Other Academic Interests
Entrepreneurship 

What drew you to the Forty Acres Scholars Program?
From the moment I stepped onto campus for Finalist Weekend, it was evident that the Forty Acres Scholars Program is one of the most inspirational communities of young leaders that I have ever had the privilege of encountering. Each and every scholar brings their own diversity of background, interests, and thought, that, when merged with the diversity of their peers, helps create the truly pluralistic society of innovative thought leaders that is this program. Additionally, the academic, professional, and personal experiences within these scholar cohorts present unparalleled opportunity for learning and growth. I am so excited to be a part of this community and I look forward to the next four years as a Forty Acres Scholar.