Meridian Community College student Jerome Adkins was surprised in his Associate Degree Nursing Program class.

Roselyn Howard, a guest speaker, spoke to Adkins and his fellow fourth-semester students about the Mississippi Nurse Foundation and how it issues scholarships that were made possible by the foundation’s Nurses Car Tag Program. “And out of nowhere, she said the winner of a nursing scholarship was me. It caught me off guard a little bit.”

From Meridian, Adkins, 23, received the $1,000 scholarship earmarked for students who exhibit professional character, leadership, scholarship, and service and participate in school of nursing activities. The College’s ADN faculty nominated him.

“I appreciate this, and I’m humbled by it,” he said. “This will help me pay off the balance I have for this semester.”

“I’ve always wanted to help people,” he said. His desire to be a nurse was channeled by other nurses who shared with him the field’s opportunities. 

From their talks and by his own discovery, Adkins said, “You’ll always have a job, and you can learn a lot from being a nurse. And you can do a lot of things being a nurse.”

“But, at the same time, it takes a lot of dedication. You’re going to have to make a lot of sacrifices. A lot of long nights… but you have to stay focused.” He noted there must be something else, too. “That’s the biggest thing; the desire to help people and not let anything change that mindset.”

Adkins said his first semester in the College ADN program was challenging. “It was my hardest because COVID hit and we had to go online. We made it through; it just shows how dedicated we were,” he said about the determination he and his classmates had.

He credits his instructors for their guidance. “MCC has a great nursing program. The teachers are very helpful. I learned a lot from them, and I really appreciate them,” he said.

Adkins plans to work in the cardiac care unit at Anderson Regional Health System and apply to the Mississippi University for Women next year to begin work on his bachelor’s degree.