From left, Erika Williams, Jazsequa Fountain and Isabella Garrido have received scholarships from Valley Health System’s Minority Healthcare Scholarship Program.
From left, Erika Williams, Jazsequa Fountain and Isabella Garrido have received scholarships from Valley Health System’s Minority Healthcare Scholarship Program.
HUNTINGTON — Valley Health Systems Inc. has awarded three $5,000 scholarships, made possible through its Minority Healthcare Scholarship Program, to individuals who are specifically pursuing careers in medicine, health sciences or health administration, according to a news release.
“As both a health care organization and an employer, investment in minority patient populations and their opportunities to pursue a career aligns with our mission and vision,” said President/CEO Steve Shattls. “We are excited about this program, which is part of our effort to address diversity, equity and inclusion. Providing these resources is one step in becoming both a community resource and an agent of change at a time that health inequities must be addressed.”
Erika Williams, of Huntington, is attending Marshall University and St. Mary’s School of Medical Imaging.
“I chose to pursue a health care-related career due to growing up in an underserved community with a lack of minority providers,” Williams said. “As an African American female, it is important to me that these groups have someone who will advocate for them and be a role model for the younger population.”
Jazsequa Fountain, of Webbville, Kentucky, plans on attending Ohio Southern University to earn a degree in nursing.
“I’ve always wanted to make sure whatever career I choose helps the people around me, and I believe nursing is the answer,” Fountain said. “One day people in my family and community are going to need me, and I want to make sure I don’t let them down.”
Isabella Garrido, of Proctorville, Ohio, has been accepted at Morehead State.
“My mom is a pediatric nurse, and I have gotten to witness the joy she’s experienced,” Garrido said. “It was because of her I knew I, too, wanted to be a nurse.”
Garrido plans to get her associate degree in nursing first to immediately start work to help with the current nursing shortage.
Mary Beth Brubeck, vice president of finance/chief financial officer, played a role in the design of the scholarship program.
“As a community health center, we look for ways to contribute to all of the communities we serve in meaningful ways,” Brubeck said. “This particular program has been in development since last fall, with the announcement of the opportunity coinciding with recent graduations, and our hope is to encourage and inspire minorities to consider a career that will allow them to join us in our mission of providing outstanding health care to everyone.”
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