Felicia Vaughn: Never Give Up!

Felicia Vaughn: Never Give Up!
Spotlight on REV Scholars

"If you want to go back to school, don't give up! Just keep pushing yourself and never give up," says Reynolds student Felicia Vaughn.

Felicia Vaughn, 25 years old is from Hopewell, Virginia. She is a graduate of Ultimate Medical Academy which is a private healthcare vocational school in Tampa, Florida. Felicia took online classes at Ultimate Medical Academy and earned her Associates degree in Health Care Management. However, she decided to switch paths and attend Reynolds Community College with plans to become a registered nurse.

Felicia is grateful that Reynolds provided her financial assistance by paying for her tuition for one semester through the REV (Re-Employing Virginians) Program. The REV grant is offered through the State of Virginia to support Virginians in upskilling and pursuing new career paths due to their employment being impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. The grant was needed because Felicia lost her job due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She is currently taking pre-requisite classes for the nursing program at Reynolds with the REV grant funds. Her goal is to receive her Nursing Associate of Applied Science degree in spring 2024 as well as her Health Science I Career Studies Certificate in fall 2022.

One of the reasons Felicia decided to become a registered nurse is having the experience of taking care of her grandmother. Felicia's grandmother is one of her great supporters. Her grandmother constantly motivates and encourages her to push through the nursing pre-requisite classes at Reynolds.

"My grandmother is excited that I am going to be the first nurse in the family, and she is rooting for me to get this nursing degree since I'm a first-generation college student, says Felicia.

Felicia's grandmother who battles a health condition sees the potential in Felicia to become a great nurse.

In addition to her grandmother's support, Felicia admits her routine would not be possible without her professors accommodating her busy work schedule.

"The professors communicate better with me than other community colleges I previously went to, and I have great professors! My professors give me due dates for assignments that I feel comfortable completing and they totally understand my situation" she noted.

Felicia mentions the faculty members at Reynolds "answers all my questions and are helping me succeed at Reynolds, and the advisors and financial aid office, they are on it! Reynolds is my support system for sure!"

While Felicia takes care of her grandmother, she has other responsibilities that she juggles in her life as well. Felicia is a full-time customer representative with Anthem Health Keepers. As a single mother of two children, Felicia enjoys being a mother, while also homeschooling her children due to the COVID-19 pandemic, working a full-time job, and taking classes at Reynolds is a full load for her.

Her routine to accomplish all her responsibilities consist of her working from 9:00 am-5:30 pm every day and once she gets off from work, she starts doing her nursing schoolwork. Felicia's children are homeschooled by her and her family support system. Felicia has Saturdays and Sundays off from her full-time job, allowing her to finish her nursing schoolwork.

Currently. Felicia is inquiring about the G3 tuition assistance program at Reynolds that supports students financially to pursue a high in-demand career. The G3 grant makes up the difference between what federal or state financial aid pays for and the cost of tuition, fees, and books.

Moreover, Felicia recommends Reynolds Community College for future prospective students. "Yes, most definitely, Reynolds is a great school, and they have amazing staff people. My perspective on Reynolds is that the classes are great and are reasonable, and you can go at your own pace, or you can go on campus. They work around my work schedule and that is very important to me." Felicia is excited to further her nursing career and she cannot wait to see how her degree will open the doors for more opportunities!

Fun Facts about Felicia: She is the youngest sibling of her two older brothers. She loves shopping at Bath and Body Works and enjoys eating her favorite sausage and potatoes dish from Olive Garden called the "Zuppa Toscana Soup." She enjoys playing basketball and started playing the sport in seventh grade. Felicia has a French and Spanish background. In high school, she took French classes in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade and then added Spanish classes in ninth grade. Felicia's language background does help her translate phone calls in French and Spanish during her full-time job at Anthem Health Keepers.