[Imc-newsroom] please help

Sun Oct 20 12:46:51 CDT 2002

My name is Anthony L. Hinton - a graduate of Emory University and a 
registered nurse.  My hope is that your fairness, influence, and prestige can 
shine a light on a situation that has devastated the life of one of God's 
true miracles - Sarah Bradley-White.

This story is about my friend Sarah who has had her last best chance to 
better her life taken away from her.  Let me explain:  My friend Sarah was 
born and raised in Canton, Mississippi. Born into a family of poverty and 
despair, Sarah had to drop out of school in the 8th grade to pick cotton and 
help her mother raise 11 children.  Sarah never graduated from high school 
and she had her first child before the age of 21.  She fled Canton after 
years of abuse by her child's father leaving her first and only child with 
her mother to focus on getting a General Educational Degree (GED).

Sarah ended up in Champaign, Illinois eventually getting her son back and 
marrying George White.  Sarah received her GED in 1982 after three attempts 
when a gentleman, seeing her heart and courage in fighting for her future, 
gave her the additional two points to attain her GED and give her the break 
needed to enroll in college.  Sarah started attending Parkland College in 
1983 still unable to read at a high school level.  She struggled for years 
with this situation but Parkland was all too willing to take her money while 
allowing her to take and repeatedly fail college courses at Parkland College.

In January of 1995, I met Sarah in a course called BHS 134 at Parkland 
College.  Sarah was a woman who had no self identity, who was severely 
overweight (in excess of 350 lbs), and who had a learning disability.  When I 
first met Sarah, she had been attending Parkland Community College for 12 
years.  Sarah's goal was to be a surgical technologist by any means 
necessary.  For the last 17 years Sarah has been working as a surgical aide 
at Carle Hospital in Champaign/Urbana Illinois; who would be a better 
candidate to become a surgical tech than a person who works in surgery 
everyday?.  She told me when she first started the job she was not able to 
learn the surgical instruments due to her learning disability.  A kind and 
patient nurse took pictures of all the instruments and taught her all the 
surgical instruments (Sarah's second break).

In May 1996, I graduated from Parkland College's Practical Nursing Program.  
During that time, I watched Sarah go from zero self-esteem to WOMANHOOD, to 
quitting cigarettes, to passing college courses at the community college, and 
to begin making strides to complete her education.  I never cried so hard in 
my life as when I had to leave my friend to relocate to Atlanta but she told 
me she was ready to stand on her own.  Sarah and I maintained constant 
contact over the years as I have mentored and tutored her.

In 1999, she was finally accepted into the surgical technology program (of 
course there were numerous obstacles she had to face from racism to being 
accused of cheating - she was accused of cheating because her grades in math 
and biology improved dramatically as a result of attentive tutoring and NOT 
as they presumed from cheating; I'd tutor her for 2-4 hours every other day 
on the telephone.  She'd fax her biology assignment to me and I'd tutor her.  
Instead of Parkland instructors praising Sarah for her improvements, they 
would humiliate her by asking her in class the definitions of certain words 
in her paper.  This was done to determine if in fact she had written the 
paper herself.  Note, no other student in the class was so mistreated.

After several weeks into the program the Director of the Surgical Technology 
program at Parkland stated to Sarah that she was not able to continue in the 
program due to her lecture grades.  The Director of the Surgical Technology 
told her that she "was not surgical technology material" and maybe she should 
try to be a nursing assistant and she (the Director) would even pay for the 
course.  Sarah, distraught and bewildered by this statement, did not give up 
but she fought to get back into the program.

In fall 2000, Sarah re-entered the surgical technology program at Parkland 
College.  She passed the first year.  Before Sarah could start her surgical 
technology clinicals in fall 2003, the Director of the Surgical Technology 
program stated to Sarah she would need to "lose weight for the surgical 
growns to fit" (again, by this time, Sarah was in excess of 420 lbs; and who 
can blame her - working in such a stressful environment).  Sarah would 
constantly call me in tears about all the hateful and racists comments made 
by her by the Surgical Technology staff.  I could not believe all what Sarah 
had to endure.  At times, I told Sarah that she should just join another 
Surgical Technology program even if it were a 120 mile drive.  Sarah stated 
that she was going to hang in there and take any abuse by the staff so long 
as she was given a fair chance in the program.  I even told Sarah that I 
would pay for her to attend a surgical technology program in Georgia.  

Fall 2002, Sarah lost over a 100 lbs of weight, went part-time at her job to 
have more time to study for the surgical technology program, and personally 
hired five tutors (ranging from a surgical technologist to a journalist at 
the University Illinois at Champaign) to finally become a Surgical 
Technologist.  Oh did I mention she adopted a little girl from Mississippi to 
save her from poverty and despair.  Sarah and her husband did all this with 
an annual income of no more $38,000.

This fall, Sarah passed all her lecture test and passed all her surgical 
technology practicals.  Sarah was on a high, calling me and faxing me her 
grades.  She was so excited that the Parkland College surgical technology 
staff was finally giving her a chance.  I have never seen a person work 
harder to obtain a certificate from a community college.  Sarah would tell me 
how this semester Carolyn Ragsdale (Assistant Director of Surgical Technology 
at Parkland College) was so proud of her.  I finally thought Sarah would make 
it to graduation in May 2003.  I finally thought that after 19 years of 
Sarah's hard work at the community college she would be able to finally 
become a Surgical Technologist.  That was shattered on October 17, 2002.

Sarah told me that they stated to her that she needed to pass one practical 
(pass or failed) before going to her surgical technology clinicals.  After 
the clinical exam, they stated to Sarah she failed, that she could not go to 
the surgical technology clinicals, and that surgical technology program was 
not for her.  The Surgical Technology staff at Parkland College had security 
waiting for Sarah to escort her to her car.  As Sarah, stated to the staff 
and security, "I am not a violent person".  Sarah said she has had enough and 
she is not able to carry on.  

It is critical to note the following: a score of "80" must be achieved to 
continue in the program.  Sarah was dismissed after 19 years because her 
score was a 79.5.

You would think a community college would look at Sarah's transcripts dated 
back to 1983, see all her trials/tribulations she's experienced, look at her 
significant grade improvements, and be supportive toward her becoming a 
surgical technologist; in fact not only supportive of her "never say die 
spirit" after 19 years but would be DAMNED PROUD of a person who had overcome 
so much in their lifetime to succeed.  In these critical times with the lack 
of health care professionals it would have been an honor to have Sarah as a 
surgical technologist.  

Sarah Bradley-White is a role model for the ages; a proud African American 
woman who has overcome all odds and obsoletes to succeed only to be stopped 
by people who deserve nothing short of a lifetime in hell for not taking 
sides with the angels in this fight.  She has the support of countless 
doctors with whom she has worked in surgery at Carle Hospital everyday for 
the last 20 years as a surgical aide.  They too are extremely upset with her 
being removed from the program.

I can't imagine what Sarah is feeling; having given up her full-time job, 
taking a second mortgage to help with her college education, adopted a child, 
and living on limited income with her self-identity being shattered (where do 
broken hearts go…?)

Please interject and do not let this injustice proceed; Parkland was all too 
comfortable taking this woman's money for 19 years and in return she leaves 
with nothing.  In the end Sarah was told by the Director of the program - 
quote - "you were not good enough to pass my program at Parkland."   The 
program belongs to the citizens of the State of Illinois and Sarah is one of 
those citizens.  Such unchecked ego, hubris, and abuse of power has to be 
investigated and stopped.

What can you do to help?  You can write a one paragraph letter in support 
asking the president of Parkland College (Zelema Harris; contact information 
below) to please research the situation, ask why a student who has shown 
great heart, passion, and the ability to learn, can't be given the benefit of 
the doubt and is treated with no compassion?

Your showing interest in the situation will make it very difficult for 
Parkland to sweep this situation under the carpet.  At a minimum they should 
be required to openly explain their policies/procedures and answer the 
questions associated with the situation.  Again, your support in writing an 
email or letter asking the president to conduct a fair, thorough 
investigation can possibly give a person an opportunity to achieve a dream 
after 19 years. 

The contact information for President Harris at Parkland College is:
zharris at parkland.cc.il.us

Please feel free to contact me at 404-808-1848 or Parkland College at if you 
have any questions.  And we thank you in advance for your support.

Best Regards,

Anthony L. Hinton, RN, BSN

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