Through highs and lows, our learners, collaborators and alumni always strive to come out on top when it comes to reaching their goals.
From overcoming personal tragedies to serving as a caretaker, the road to graduation wasn’t an easy one for graduate Lanigeria Batts-Sumling. But with hard work, determination, and support from the College, she proved that nothing could stand in her way of becoming a nurse.
I went to a Lutheran high school in California, graduated from there, and went to a junior college. How many kids do you have? Okay, now I have. I've lost two. So the oldest now she's just turned 37. And the other one will be 36 in September. So, and I'm still 49. But anyhow, and I have four grandbabies. Now. So I lost, so it was four total. And now it's just two. Just, it's hard, you know, just try to keep going. Everything happens for a reason. It makes us stronger. And just make sure that the ones coming up behind me, the little ones, that they don't have to see anything rough or go anything, go through anything rough, which, you know, everybody does go through their different trials or going through the little storms, but nothing like this.
I believe it was March. Sarah was her counselor and the counselor reached out to me and said, "I need to talk immediately." And told me about a learner she had whose son had just been killed in New Orleans. And Sarah was visibly upset crying, needed solace herself, which I thought was wonderful because it shows the empathy that our counselors feel for our learners. Sarah, of course, immediately reached out to her faculty members to see what we could do about extending clinicals, extending deadlines and such so that we could still get her through the program that semester. And at first, we thought it was going to be withdrawal. But Lani said, "No, I want to keep going!" And I remember thinking at the time, "I don't think she knows how much she's taking on right now." But she did it. And she came back and it was slow. And it was hard. But then she succeeded. And shortly after that, later that summer, her house burned down.
I was in clinicals, I left to go to clinicals. And my husband called me and he told me, "You have to get back home, you know, the building's on fire!" I said I just got here. And I said, "Okay!" So I had to run and tell the professor. I said, "I have to go my house is on fire." You know? And she said, "Go, go, go, Lani go!" You know, I said, "Okay." So she said she'll let the school know. So when I was rushing home, normally I'll go one way to the freeway but this particular time I went this way to the freeway and came and as I'm coming along the freeway because my place is right off the freeway. See noting but black smoke. I mean, I never seen anything like this since 911. All the dust, the clouds. I mean, it was just awful.
But anyhow, they wouldn't let me go up there to get anything. I lost my birds flew away. I had two birds. They flew away. So we didn't lose anyone or anything. But just our building and we still don't know what happened. As you see the fire department, the water's going in my place. Me and another guy, the roof caves in -- falls into my place now. So you know I had everything set up there, my computer for school. The school sent me another laptop. So I have another laptop because I can't turn in anything. I had my flash drive. I had all my, when I tell you everything, uniforms, all my books, all my notes. Everything.
We all jumped right into survival mode and how, "Okay, how can we now support her?" So in addition to extensions, and grace given on some tests, a clinical assignment, and of course the laptop and everything that we did to help her find housing after that. It was through our connections with the United Way in Las Vegas that we were able to help her find some temporary housing. We got clothing to her. She had such great support down there and didn't need too much of what we offered. But watching this college jump into action for her was nothing short of monumental.
It's going to get better. It's going to get greater later. You know what it was just rough but I couldn't think all I thought about was my things. I had to just said, "Don't worry about that. It can be replaced. Lives can't be replaced." You know? I still had my Hesi little book because I carry them with me and I had to some flashcards I kept with me. And so it was just starting all over. It was rough, you know, but I still had campus, I had access to campus. So all my school stuff like that was still on the computer. So, but anyhow, I kept on going with a smile on my face. You know, if I say, "He only give puts on you, which you could bare. He's putting it on me!"
But anyhow, and made it through. It's rough, you know, but sometimes I can't believe I've done it. Got it on out the way, but they were supportive. They sent me blankets, clothes, the school sent me the laptop, which was really important because the classes and just getting back on my feet. But so I had to work a little bit. So I would work at a plasma place where I will do agency, you know, agency work, and but I wanted to pass this HESI. I heard so much about this exit HESI you know, so I um didn't want to not pass it. And plus, you know, I had took a break, then something else went through. So those are my attempts.
So they had passed this new policy, that as a third attempt, you can't. You have to withdraw. Withdrawn. So I had that on me. "I gotta pass this, you know, I made it too far." So I said, "All I'm gonna do everyday to study this HESI, all that other stuff is a repeat, so I'll get it in." And I don't know what I was thinking. I passed the test with 1001 I was so happy. So I'm wondering, I started turning in everything in and almost missed the deadline, but I made it through so I'm done.
Why nursing?
Um, cuz I was always, you know, the oldest girl taking care of everybody, my older brothers -- I would take care of them -- I was just the nurse around the house. Always being taken care of the kids, you know, the neighbors, I would baby sit coming up, I was the babysitter. So I was always just with the infants, you know, to teenagers. I was always taking care of somebody, a kid or somebodys. Yeah.
Talk with us about taking care of your dad, like, what does that mean to you?
Because, you know, that's dad, you know, you. It's different. It's different, you know, but I always said, "The way I'm taking care of someone else's parent or grandparent, I would be so happy. They take care of him the way I take care of their loved ones." You know? So, our communities, they need us, they need nurses, it's a shortage of nurses. You know, even though I take care of Dad, there's other dads that need me, you know, and I feel like I have to get this done so that I have the right. You know, my right credentials to be able to go out there and help somebody else.
If I can do it, anybody can do it. Always remember that. To get what you want. To get to that finish line it's going to always be some setbacks, but just keep on going. Because nothing is easy. Nothing is easy at all. You got to go through to get through. What's your advice for other learners, people who are struggling, no matter what, just keep on going. Even if you have one day, keep on going. You know, just keep on going because you haven't lost your mind. You may feel like you've lost your mind but you have it, just keep on going. You have to press forward and press on. And that's that was mainly that Flame Forward. Flame Forward at that makes me push forward, keep pushing, you know, and so that's what I did.
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