OLIVIA HART STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES SSS provides opportunities to income eligible, first-generation college students, or students with a disability with academic development, tutoring; advice and assistance in postsecondary course selection, financial aid programs, locating public and private scholarships; and assistance in completing financial aid applications.
In so many ways, Olivia Hart's story began six and a half years ago. She is not one of those who always wanted to be a doctor. Her passion for this profession was ignited at a time in her life when she felt lost and destined for failure. She clearly remembers Friday, September 16, 2016. She was fifteen years old, sitting in Dr. Steven Southern’s office. Matter -of-factly and without a great deal of ceremony, he broke the news to her that she was thirty-five weeks pregnant. For a moment, the air completely left the room, but in its place, a fire burned with intensity. At that moment, she knew she wanted to become a physician. For the remainder of high school, she spent time changing diapers and studying to graduate as class valedictorian. By the time she reached her senior year, she was accepted to be a member of the Accelerated BS/MD program at Marshall University. She knew she wanted to emulate Dr. Southern. She graduated from Marshall University in three years and began her medical school journey. Interestingly, motherhood has redefined success for her. Not only does she strive for good grades, but she also strives to be a role model for her daughter. She is determined to break the teenage mother stereotype. She refuses to see herself as a societal failure. As a current medical student, she is reminded of why she began this journey in the first place: as a vessel to bring healing and hope. She poignantly remembers being a pregnant sophomore in high school and thinking for a fleeting moment that her life was over. She knows now that the moment she became a mother was when her life had a new purpose and her journey had a new destination.
1407 STUDENTS $2,328,783 FUNDING
INCREASE GOOD ACADEMIC STANDING INCREASE PERSISTENCE RATE INCREASE BACHELORS DEGREE ATTAINMENT RATE
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