Character building began early for Miami native Bernardette Gesni. Both her parents were Cuban immigrants—her father a political prisoner—who prioritized moral principles over material goods. “We did not have much growing up,” says Gesni, “but we had strong values, including faith, perseverance, and gratitude.”
Lately, her gratitude is in full supply. While pursuing her dream of becoming a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist through Barry’s post-baccalaureate Doctor of Nursing Practice program, Gesni has earned four merit-based scholarships, each of which has lessened her financial burden and motivated her to attain a level of success that will allow her to give back. These scholarships—the AANA Maureen Reilly Memorial Scholarship, the Goizueta Foundation Minority Empowerment Endowed Scholarship for Graduate Students, the Ellen Sanders-Galkin Endowed Nursing Scholarship, and the North Dade Medical Foundation Endowed Nursing Scholarship—not only recognize Gesni’s extraordinary talent and potential, they also affirm her personal decision to embark on a career journey that can be costly for many. Thankfully, Barry’s efforts to connect students with grant and scholarship opportunities, coupled with Gesni’s hard work, has enabled her to decrease her student loan debt.
“I feel honored to receive any assistance whatsoever,” Gesni says. After earning her BSN from Barry in 2006, she worked as a registered nurse until she gained enough financial stability and personal courage to return for her doctorate in anesthesiology. Although she was accustomed to debt-free living, she knew advancing her career would require taking out student loans; but she was unprepared for the personal stress that came with holding debt. Realizing that she needed to recalibrate her contributions to her family was particularly difficult, even as her loved ones fully supported her ambitions. But then she began seeking out solutions, finding scholarship options that were tailored to her nursing pursuits as well as her academic and personal background. Earning four is beyond what she imagined, but every bit of that monetary support has been crucial.
“The level of financial stress my family and I feel has been reduced thanks to the scholarships I have been awarded,” she says. “There is less of a concern regarding the amount I will owe when I graduate, and whether I will be able to stay under the calculated budget we had planned for. In addition, these scholarships have given us the ability to assist with the resources that my stepdaughters need during these trying, uncertain times. All of these reductions in stressors have allowed me to stay focused on the end goals of my education.”
And what are those end goals? Gesni knows that the only way to demonstrate her gratitude is by becoming the best CRNA she can be. Completing Barry’s program, which is known for graduating exceptional nurse anesthetists into the field, is her first step. She also plans to get involved in the professional organizations that promote healthcare change. Ultimately, she wants to impact medically underserved communities through her work. And, someday soon, she wants to support up-and-coming nurse anesthetists like herself. “[The generosity I’ve received] has inspired me to one day contribute to the education of others, once I am in a position to do so,” she says.
Even as she strives to achieve these lifelong goals, Gesni is paying it forward in small ways. “I have already started to talk to the newer classes about the scholarship opportunities available through Barry University and other sites,” she says.