By Collin Coats
Since the beginning Brianna Grimsley has always known her passion for helping people would take her a long way; she never had a doubt in her mind.
This Grambling State University freshman from Pensacola, Fla., is majoring in nursing.
She said she always believed that she was destined to become a nurse and represent the minorities with pride and dignity.
Grimsley said her purpose for becoming a nurse is to make an immediate impact on her community.
“To make people the most comfortable, and reassured as they can be in a stressful moment in time,” she said. “I chose my major because I need to represent the black community. When people see people of their skin color, taking care of them makes them more comfortable and gives them hope.”
Grimsley has always been a leader in her community. She was a part of multiple clubs such as African American club, she was also a girl scout and part of BLM movement.
“Growing up as the oldest out of three I was looked to as a leader, and it came to me naturally,” she said.
Grimsley said she knows her journey at GSU is going to be a long one and she knows it will not be easy, but with her strong faith in the Lord, strong family support, and the drive and motivation, she knows she can handle anything.
As a child Grimsley watched her mom finish college in the top three in her class with a degree in engineering as a black woman. Given that model, setting goals and achieving them is something she is familiar with.
She finished high school in Pensacola with a 3.4 GPA and she was also part of her high school’s nursing program which helped her earn credits for college.
Grimsley said she wants to make her community and her family proud. She doesn’t want to disappoint anybody and puts a lot of pressure on herself not to fail.
Grimsley has always had strong women in her life and she believes she can follow the footsteps of her mother, aunt, and cousin. All of them have great careers and give back to their community while maintaining a family.
She said hopes to follow in the footsteps of her aunt and become a traveling nurse and help people of her community.
Note: This story originally appeared in Grambling State University’s The Gramblinite.
