Congratulations and much success to Keisha Dawkins of Jacksonville, Amalia Pardo of Winter Springs, Rebecca Bouchard of Anna Maria, and Robin Davenport of Coconut Creek as the recipients. 

For more information about the 2010 University of Phoenix-March of Dimes scholarship applications, contact Lori Reeves @ lreeves@marchofdimes.com, March of Dimes State Program Director. 

For more information about the University of Phoenix and their programs, click here.

Keisha Dawkins, North Florida Campus
One of the full-tuition nursing scholarships was awarded to Keisha Dawkins, a Jacksonville resident and mother of three. Dawkins obtained her associate’s degree from Queens College in North Carolina. However, she was raised by her grandmother, who constantly stressed the importance of education, so she always wanted to pursue her BSN.

Dawkins is currently working as a clinical nursing supervisor at the Florida Department of Health, with the responsibility of overseeing the pediatrics, family practice, dental and STD clinics. Dawkins’ vision aligns perfectly with the March of Dimes mission, since she is already serving on the Infant Mortality Task Force. Plus, she supervises a clinic for pregnant women to link them with services such as WIC, Medicaid and Healthy Start. By obtaining her BSN, she hopes to assume an assistant nursing director position and continue to grow her career.

“My lifelong dream has always been to become a nurse educator, and the degree from University of Phoenix will help me get one step closer,” said Dawkins. “Being a nurse is not just a job, it is my purpose, and giving back is what I was meant to do with my life.”

Dawkins is so grateful that she received a full-tuition March of Dimes scholarship to obtain her degree at University of Phoenix, especially since she’s still paying off student loans from her associate’s degree. She eventually wants to get her master’s degree to become a nursing professor.

Amalia Pardo, Central Florida Campus
Amalia Pardo is a 45-year-old caring for two children. After serving nine years of active duty, she was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy in 1993. She obtained her RN degree from Seminole Community College and her primary job has been with the Perinatal High Risk Unit at a local hospital.

Earlier this year, Pardo took on a second job at the Health Department, where her role encompasses family planning for the community. She always dreamed of pursing another degree to further her career and really be able to do something that would give underserved populations access to healthcare and education.

Pardo learned of the University of Phoenix’s March of Dimes scholarship opportunity through an e-mail she received at the Health Department and when someone else sent her the information again, she knew it was something she had to pursue. Pardo submitted an application and was awarded a full-tuition scholarship to pursue her MSN with a specialization in Nursing Informatics through the University’s online program. She is extremely grateful for the opportunity to continue her education without the financial burden.

Rebecca Bouchard, West Florida Campus
Surviving this troubled economy may appear to be a piece of cake for Rebecca Bouchard of Anna Maria, Florida. However, there are many layers to her story that may inspire others.

As a child, Rebecca enjoyed working in the healthcare industry as a candy striper. She eventually earned an associate’s degree in nursing in 1992 and decided to dedicate her career to improving health care for infants and children. At the time, Rebecca never imagined it would take more than a decade to return to college to earn her bachelor’s degree, but life happened.

Rebecca married, had two children (now ages 10 and 11) and even opened a family business. All the while, she earned a steady income working in the neonatal intensive care unit at Manatee Memorial Hospital. In her spare time, she also played an instrumental role in recruiting donor funding for the renovation of the hospital’s pediatric center. 

Then life took a turn for the worse this year when her husband was laid off from his engineering job, debts from a family business surfaced due to a divorce of their loved ones, and two family members were diagnosed with cancer.

In response, Rebecca rose to the occasion to overcome these challenges. She turned her passion for baking into a business (beckymakescakes.com) for additional income. Then, her hospital supervisor shared a full-tuition scholarship opportunity through University of Phoenix-West Florida that was created in light of its local March of Dimes sponsorship.

Rebecca applied and received the scholarship this summer. After devoting several years of her healthcare career to caring for premature babies, she is finally on track to earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing. 

For someone with her optimism, Rebecca might describe her University of Phoenix scholarship as the icing on the cake. Now that she feels empowered by education to continue dreaming – she is sure the best is yet to come. 

Robin Davenport, South Florida Campus
For Robin Davenport of Coconut Creek, Florida, her career dreams took shape at a very young age. Inspired by the work of teachers and nurses, she decided she could be both.

Fast-forward several decades and Robin has accomplished her dreams and then some. After earning a master’s degree in special education and a bachelor’s degree in an accelerated nursing program, she gained valuable professional experience in labor and delivery and became certified as a lactation consultant, childbirth educator and infant massage instructor.

She continues to find ways to increase her knowledge of women’s health and share the information in ways that will impact the well-being of women. For example, Robin is no stranger to March of Dimes. Previously, she devoted 5 years as a trainer for Florida’s Healthy Start program, which works with the March of Dimes to help pregnant, at-risk, low-income women learn how to prevent pre-term deliveries.

Today the 47-year-old works for Alere as a perinatal clinician who oversees the case management of high-risk pregnancies. The mother of two children (ages 16 and 9) has always wanted to pursue a master’s degree in nursing because she aspires to serve as a professor of nursing in maternal child health.

Thanks to the University of Phoenix – March of Dimes scholarship, she is enrolled in an online graduate program to achieve this academic goal and apply her skills to make a difference among pregnant women and their children for generations to come.