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Jacklyn Asamoah

Jacklyn Asamoah

Grad Issue: Student plans to dedicate her life to helping others

A career in the medical field is something that might seem like a natural choice for a person with a father who is a registered nurse and a certified nursing assistant for a mother, but one New Mexico graduate is showing almost supernatural abilities along the way.

Jacklyn Asamoah, a medical laboratory science major, said one of her early memories was when she was at the hospital with her father. She stapled one of her fingers when her dad was working on charts.

Asamoah said she cried — of course — but one of the doctors came and helped her remove the staple and get bandaged up.

She said she always remembered how the doctor in the white coat helped her. She said there was one thing she knew for sure at the time — she wanted to help people.

Helping people seems to be something that comes naturally for Asamoah, who is also the president of the Black Student Union. Her friend and mentor, Brandi Stone, said she took notice of Asamoah during a meeting she attended as a freshman.

Stone said when Asamoah introduced herself, she told the group that she wanted to start a revolution at the University and quickly started making an impact.

She became the president of the organization the following year and started advocating on behalf of black students — organizing meetings with the university president, provost, other administrators and department heads to make sure their voice was being heard.

Fighting for funding, organizing a town hall meeting and increasing awareness through education are just some of things she accomplished. She said her proudest moments include: a “blackout” event and another in which students wore shirts that read “black and educated.”

She said she has seen several people wearing the shirts, regardless of their ethnicity and even witnessed some non-UNM students wearing them.

Still, Asamoah said it was frustrating to realize how little progress has been made in many other areas of how black students are treated and the opportunities that are (or are not) available, saying some things haven’t changed in several decades.

Circumstances are not the same for everyone, and although causes like social change are important, sometimes there can be consequences when people choose to take a stand.

Asamoah said an important consideration is to make sure people are comfortable with their level of commitment and not force the issue, though she has shown a willingness to be the voice for everyone regarding the push for change.

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Stone said the biggest thing she would want people to know about Asamoah is her selflessness — she consistently puts the needs of others above her own.

“She truly is community-conscious and action-oriented,” Stone said.

Another friend and mentor, Bianca Thongchua described Asamoah as being a bright and respectful young lady. She said her passion and drive is something special and sets her apart from others.

Thongchua said Asamoah is “someone I would have wished to be like if I were her age again.”

She also discussed Asamoah’s commitment to others, saying it is important for her to be the voice for people who don’t have one, or are otherwise not heard.

“That is a huge part of what her passions are — standing up and being a voice for communities that are normally marginalized,” Thongchua said. “She wants to make sure everyone has a seat at the table.”

She said Asamoah stands up for what is right and pushes for equality, which she believes speaks volumes about her character.

Those qualities may have also played a major role in Asamoah being selected as a Ronald E. McNair Research Opportunity Scholar.

She said her program requires her to attend courses in the summer as well and the additional work meant there wasn’t much free time, but the research opportunities helped her pave the way.

Asamoah said she initially wanted to do research on the liver, then shifted toward food preparation and eventually decided on focusing on water quality and management, ensuring clean water would be available to the community.

“Once we got there, I realized my life’s work. This is essentially what I want to do with my life, is provide clean water,” she said.

Asamoah said she worked diligently with her mentor, Dr. Jamal Martin, to complete the research. She said he wears several hats on campus — something she also knows a thing or two about.

She has also been the president of the Black Student Alliance and played a role in the Powerful Movement of Educated Sisters. She said the latter recently raised enough funds to help provide several prom dresses to teen girls so they could attend the dance.

Asamoah said she hopes the next step in her life will start by beginning her graduate program at Johns Hopkins University.

Robert Maler is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers football and men’s and women’s tennis. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.

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