Local CPS grads to enter collage with financial, moral support

For the second consecutive year, the medical staff of Advocate Trinity Hospital, 2320 E. 93rd St., Chicago, invested in the future health of Chicago’s Southeast Side by offering scholarships to college-bound students with a demonstrated commitment to pursuing a career in health care.

Hospital physicians, nursing leaders and team members attended an August 4 reception to congratulate eight recipients of the 2022 Advocate Trinity Medical Staff Scholarship. Each student, who completed high school in May 2022, received $1,000 to support their studies.

” We’re pouring into you because we want you to pour into this community,” said Gwendolyn Oglesby-Odom, Interim Leader and Chief Nursing Officer of Advocate Trinity Hospital, during her remarks to the gathered students and family members. “Thank you for never giving up.”

This year’s recipients graduated from Corliss, George Washington, Simpson’s Academy for Young Women and South Shore International High Schools. They intend to pursue careers in geriatric, emergency and pediatric nursing, pediatric occupational therapy, and clinical psychology.

The Advocate Trinity Medical Staff Scholarship was created in 2021 by a committee led by Advocate Trinity Medical Staff President Dr. Julie Taylor (Family Medicine), Dr. Shelley Amuh (Obstetrics-Gynecology), Dr. Jondell Jenkins (Podiatry), and Dr. Dianne Damper (retired, Internal Medicine). Since its inception, the program has awarded a total of 15 scholarships – seven in 2021 and eight scholarships in 2022. In addition to offering financial support to students in need, the doctors established the scholarship to sustain the pipeline of health care professionals willing to practice in Advocate Trinity’s service area.

“A lot of us [on Advocate Trinity’s clinical team] grew up on the South Side and attended Chicago Public Schools just like you. We’re excited about you and will continue to nurture you along the way,” Dr. Taylor told scholarship recipients. “Our hope is to become role models for you, so you will come back later and work in the neighborhood where you grew up.”

Any student attending high school within Advocate Trinity’s service area was eligible to apply for the scholarship, regardless of financial need or ethnicity. Selection criteria included high school GPA and a personal essay.