Gwinnett Tech Foundation Awards First Nana Grant to Amber Aur, a Health Sciences Student at Gwinnett Technical College
Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) April 24, 2017 -- On Friday, April 21 the Gwinnett Tech Foundation awarded its inaugural Nana Grant to Amber Aur, a health sciences student at Gwinnett Technical College. The mission of Nana Grants is to provide childcare grants to low-income student mothers attending Georgia’s public technical colleges and universities.
Nana Grants offers a multi-generational approach to promoting economic mobility through education. Nana Grants gives single mothers the opportunity for a life-changing post-secondary education. At the same time, Nana Grants ensures that children in poverty receive a high-quality early-education experience.
Amber is the first student at Gwinnett Tech to receive a Nana Grant. She is currently studying Diagnostic Medical Sonography. She has a 4.0 GPA and is on track to graduate spring semester 2018. While Amber focuses on her studies her two-year-old son is enrolled and thriving at the D. Scott Hudgens, Jr. Early Education Center, located on the campus of Gwinnett Technical College. The Nana Grant and other financial support she receives from the Gwinnett Tech Foundation allows Amber to be able to afford quality early childhood education for her son, while investing in her education as well.
Amber shares, “I moved to Georgia 3 years ago from Pennsylvania to pursue my career and make a better life. I don’t have any family here to help with my son. If it weren’t for the Hudgens Early Education Center I would not be able to attend school and get a career to not only make my life better, but most importantly his.” Aur continues, “I was so nervous about finding a daycare center I am comfortable with. The Hudgens Center is the best place for my son while I am at school. I truly enjoy everything about it.”
The Diagnostic Medical Sonography program at Gwinnett Tech is a rigorous program that requires students to take two registries – Abdomen and OBGYN. But Aur plans to push herself even further to get registered in vascular, pediatrics and breast sonography as well. She says, “All of these areas have great medical advances to help discover and cure pathological diseases early and to save many lives. I hope one day to be a travel sonographer and make a difference all around the world.”
“We are so proud of Amber’s hard work, and it is an honor to support her journey,” says Erica Stephens, Executive Director of Nana Grants. “I founded Nana Grants in honor of my mother and grandmother. They worked together to care for me while mom attended nursing school. It’s especially fitting that our first grant has been awarded to a health sciences student.”
The Nana Grant was gifted through Gwinnett Tech Foundation, which serves to support and enhance higher education at Gwinnett Tech by helping reduce financial barriers students face as they strive to reach their full potential. Mary Beth Byerly, Vice President of Institutional Advancement for Gwinnett Technical College says, “Amber is a true example of how talent and tenacity, coupled with educational opportunity can propel an individual economically. Gwinnett Tech is so fortunate to have Nana Grants support for our students. Opportunities such as this scholarship is a real game changer for Amber and her family.”
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About Gwinnett Tech
Gwinnett Technical College, one of Georgia's largest technical colleges, is committed to delivering relevant knowledge to meet the workforce training needs of its community. The College offers more than 140 associate degree, diploma and certificate programs and hundreds of seminars, workshops and courses providing specialized training. Gwinnett Tech is Gwinnett County's largest provider of corporate training and also serves residents and businesses in north Fulton County. Gwinnett Technical College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate degree. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Gwinnett Technical College. In addition, some college programs hold separate licensure or accreditation status with appropriate agencies. For more information, visit GwinnettTech.edu. A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia.
About Nana Grants
Nana Grants, Inc. is a 501c3 nonprofit dedicated to ensuring quality, reliable child care for low-income mothers pursuing a postsecondary education. Each Nana Grant helps cover the cost of on-site technical college/university child care. Our goal is to remove the uncertainty of continuous quality child care from the equation so that student mothers can focus on their studies, graduate, and enjoy family-sustaining employment. By providing access to both quality child care and secondary education, Nana Grants strives to promote economic mobility and a family culture that values educational achievement. For more information visit nanagrants.org.
Erica Stephens, Nana Grants, http://www.NanaGrants.org, +1 770-845-3663, [email protected]
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