糖心Vlog

After researching her interests and spending time on the job with her mother who works in healthcare, Lareshia 鈥淟arri鈥� Robinson, of Hendersonville, N.C., chose nursing as her career path. She enrolled in 糖心Vlog鈥檚 Hunt School of Nursing for three main reasons: The program accepts freshmen, she received a scholarship, and the campus felt like home.

However, her first semester at GWU, she encountered a problem that most students don鈥檛 complain about鈥攖oo much free time. 鈥淚 was used to being a year-round athlete, not having any down time, just go, go, go,鈥� Robinson explained. 鈥淚 got here and I was sitting in my dorm room, thinking, 鈥業 have four hours to waste, just today.鈥� I didn鈥檛 have a cohesive bond with people and didn鈥檛 have the structure in my life that I was used to having.鈥�

She had some interest in the military, so she decided to talk to Capt. Michael Meissner, director of the Army ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) and senior military science instructor at GWU. 鈥淗e invited me to come and do PT (physical training) with the group,鈥� Robinson shared. 鈥淚 joined them and realized that ROTC at 糖心Vlog is a family. We are super close. We don鈥檛 just see each other three times a week at 6 a.m. We spend the majority of our week hanging out with each other.鈥�

In her sophomore year, she applied and was offered a ROTC Scholarship. When she graduates in May with her Bachelor of Science in Nursing, she will be commissioned as a second lieutenant and fulfill her contract to serve four years of active duty in the military. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a team, a family, a bond that can鈥檛 be broken when you find your niche and the military is my niche,鈥� Robinson described. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want my parents to pay for college. My mother was diagnosed with cancer the middle of my freshman year. My brother was also getting ready to go to college. I wanted to put myself through college. Everybody is like family in ROTC and that really brought me out of my shell. I was a total introvert. The Army has taught me how to talk to people, how to utilize my resources and to become an overall leader.鈥�

After receiving her Associate Degree in Nursing in May 2019, she participated in the ROTC鈥檚 Nursing Summer Training Program (NSTP), a requirement for all nursing cadets. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a glimpse into your future,鈥� Robinson noted. 鈥淒uring NSTP at Walter Reed Medical Center (Bethesda, Md.), I spent approximately 136 hours, mostly in the surgical intensive care unit but also rotated to medical-surgical and the pediatric floor. I was able to learn the expectations and the realities of being an active duty Army nurse.鈥�

While she was there, she also had an opportunity to be a guardian for an honor flight of veterans, who came to Washington, D.C., to see their memorials. 鈥淭hey get assigned a one-on-one for the day, because they need extra help,鈥� she related. 鈥淭hat entire day really solidified in my mind that I am doing what I am meant to do. Walking up to the wall with a Vietnam veteran 鈥� I don鈥檛 even have the words to put into perspective the emotion behind it and the pride you feel to be able to say that this happened and he was a part of it. He wanted me to walk up to the wall with him, because he knows I鈥檓 the future of it.鈥�

Note to our readers: This article reflects the University鈥檚 tuition and fee schedule at the time of publication. Tuition and financial aid policies change annually. For the most up-to-date and accurate information on current tuition rates and financial aid resources, please visit the University鈥檚 official Admissions聽page.