An exciting new development is emerging in our St. David’s Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program. Our Scholarship Alumni, now currently building their medical careers themselves, are beginning to pay it forward to the next generation and applying to be mentors to new scholarship recipients. Alumni such as Jordan Whisenhunt (class of 2009 Kocurek Scholarship recipient, currently a nurse at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center) and Thomas Suh (class of 2011 Kocurek Scholarship recipient, and currently a physical therapist and athletic trainer at Whitestone Physical Therapy), pictured below, are now mentoring two freshmen as they begin their college careers.
Our recipients are increasingly saying that it’s not the financial assistance that has the most impact on their education – it’s their assigned mentors that help guide and encourage them through college. Our mentors have the ability to help their mentees find internships, and provide shadowing opportunities and other educational experiences that their peers in their classes may not have access to. This leg up gives our scholars real-world experience that is invaluable to their professional life. Our former recipients have very recent experience in college, and they know how demanding it can be. The support they can offer is critical to their mentees’ success.
This story was published as part of the August 2019 St. David’s Foundation’s newsletter, The 411. View the full newsletter here.
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