STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Alexandra

February 2024// by Jane Hiatt

Flashback to the spring of 2021 when Alexandra captured the attention of the application readers for the POE-South Bay Scholarship. Attached to her application was her transcript which was hard for even the most experienced readers to figure out. She had been home-schooled for part of high school and then had taken community college classes at other times. For the past two years, she had been enrolled in the local public high school, to enable her to have more social interaction, but then COVID hit and she had to attend remotely!  Even her high school guidance counselor noted, “Her transcript when she enrolled with us was one of the most complicated I had ever seen, and it was instantly clear that she had not had a very stable high school journey thus far. Upon closer inspection, it also became clear that despite this lack of stability, Alex is very bright.”

In their letters of recommendation, her teachers praised her ability to be an independent learner and described her as a strong team member who motivated other students. But this young woman had little family support to go off to college and who was, in fact, needed at home to help with her siblings. There was little financial help available from her family, and Alexandra had not been able to work outside of the home because she lived far from transportation. When we first met Alexandra, we learned that even though she had faced many challenges at home and in school, she was positive and optimistic. In her words, “I learned to thrive in the chaos that surrounded me. I beat all the odds and statistics that labeled me or my family.”

While Alexandra was committed to going to San Francisco State University and majoring in biology, she was concerned about being needed at home. She thought she might need to come home on the weekends to help her mom. This concern was another worry for the scholarship awards committee. We have learned through experience that students who are immersed in a rigorous academic program and who are also away from home for the first time have a difficult time managing messages from home that they are missed and needed. Handling such a situation can be very stressful for our students. In the end, however, the committee voted unanimously in favor of accepting Alexandra into the program and giving her the first Jerry Smallwood Scholarship Award, an award created in memory of the founder of POE, Jerry Smallwood. Jerry was a teacher who wanted to help the underserved have a chance to go to college.  She championed the student who had a tougher story, the one who might appear to be a little riskier but who had never lost sight of their goal to attend college. Jerry wanted POE to be the tipping point that would support those students’ college journey financially and with a mentor.

When Alexandra first met her new mentor, she immediately impressed Jane with her warmth and her positive attitude. She was open and eager to learn about what to expect from college in general and San Francisco State in particular. According to Jane, during their first lunch together, they developed an easy rapport which has made working with Alex a delight for her mentor.

Initially, she faced a few challenges. Most notable was that she had somehow missed all of the emails from SFSU about the tasks she needed to accomplish in order to be ready for school in the fall. This oversight had left her unaware of the deadline to apply for student housing.

Though Alex was chagrinned that she had made the housing mistake, she did not panic or become overwhelmed. Instead, she approached her apartment search swiftly and with purpose.  Fortunately, Alex met three compatible young women with whom she successfully shared a two-bedroom apartment for two years.

Alex enrolled in SF Metro, a program designed for first generation students that provides tutoring, academic advisors, and general guidance about how to deal with campus bureaucracy and requirements. In addition, Alex joined a peer-to-peer mentoring program where she matched with a grad student in biological sciences, Alex’s chosen field. For three years, this mentor has provided her with enthusiastic support and invaluable insights about the biological sciences field and career possibilities.

As a sophomore, Alex applied for and was accepted into S.F. Build, a mentoring program sponsored and funded by NIH that is designed to provide under-represented groups with more opportunities in science. The program has included a generous fellowship and frequent career development workshops. When Alex finishes the program this spring, she will have worked for two years in a biology research lab, conducting research into e coli bacteria.

Each semester, Alex has taken a class load full of science and math classes and has excelled. She has the intellect, the work ethic, and the self-discipline necessary to succeed with a rigorous academic load while also working in the lab. What’s next for Alex? She’s exploring her possibilities and considering graduate school, nursing school, or medical school, but she is also clear that she wants a balanced life with time for gardening, hiking, her family, and her friends.

While Alexandra’s high school transcript may have at first seemed jumbled and she may have appeared to be a risky applicant to POE, she has proven that she was indeed a worthy recipient of the Jerry Smallwood Scholarship. In her peripatetic high school career, she learned how to adapt to different situations, how to advocate for herself, and how to put in the study time necessary to succeed in a science major, certainly traits that will be beneficial throughout her life.

NOTE FROM ALEXANDRA:

Jane has done quite a bit for me as a mentor, she has been an extensive support system for me. If I need resources for upcoming scholarships, or workshops to learn something new, she is ready to share information or look into something right away for me. Jane has also always been someone who is there to listen when I am struggling or worried about general life situations, she has been there to give me advice and let me know that she is there to help. I appreciate everything that she has done for me, does with me, and the life guidance that she has to share when we meet. She is very genuine in her actions, not something I am used to, so it has been a breath of fresh air to have someone like her in my life.