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Zoe Abney (Class of 2021) earned her BS in psychology from Medgar Evers College, and is currently pursuing a second bachelor’s degree in nursing. Throughout Zoe’s ten-year journey, Breakthrough New York provided her with resources that helped her succeed and encouraged her to never give up on her dreams.
A Safe Place to Grow
When Zoe began the middle school program, she described herself as goal-oriented and an overachiever, and desired to be successful in life. Breakthrough fostered these qualities by providing a safe environment for Zoe to grow. “Breakthrough helped me with overall growth [and] maturity. I learned a lot from being studious and that helped me with the overachieving attitude that I have,” she says.
In high school, Zoe felt overwhelmed about college and was discouraged when she didn’t get into all the schools she applied to; even so, she was determined to go to college, and Breakthrough supported her through the process to find the right college for her. “I didn’t feel like I was able to go to a decent school, but Breakthrough made me realize that there’s a college out there for anyone,” she reflects.
A Nursing Student
Initially, Zoe assumed that she had to become a doctor to be a significant part of the medical field. As a Breakthrough student, Zoe learned that she didn’t have to limit herself. Her experience as a healthcare provider during the COVID-19 pandemic convinced her to pursue nursing, and now she is applying to an accelerated nursing program.
“For me to even pursue a second bachelor’s shows that I didn’t get too scarred from the first one. I recovered and I feel like college prepared me to take on a lot of the adult tasks that I have currently,” she explains.
Connect with Zoe on LinkedIn.
