CCBC Student, Nursing
Grace, a first-generation college graduate, earned her nursing degree tuition-free at CCBC.
Grace Hernandez didn’t always plan to become a nurse.
“I originally was a biology major because I wanted to go for medicine,” she says. “But the more I met people and interacted with, I was drawn to nursing, the patient work and everything.”
Her decision became even clearer after meeting her future husband, a stage 4 childhood cancer survivor who credits his nurses with getting him through frequent hospital stays. Grace began exploring her options and chose CCBC’s nursing program after hearing “so many great things” about it from others, including her future in-laws, both program graduates.
“I was so nervous,” she shares. That feeling was especially real as a future first-generation college graduate, yet she discovered a supportive environment at the college. “During my first semester, an instructor pulled me aside after a skills test and told me, ‘You’re gonna be an amazing nurse.’ That really stuck with me.”
Grace trains at the Carol D. Eustis Center for Health Professions at CCBC Essex, a state-of-the-art facility with simulation labs, lifelike manikins and realistic hospital and home-care environments.
“It truly does feel like you're in a hospital,” she says. “I was blown away at how nice this building is. It's absolutely beautiful.”
As she moved through clinicals, Grace found her calling: caring for babies born prematurely or with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome. Her training also includes a summer externship on a neuro/stroke medical surgical unit and a practicum to practice at the end of her last semester this fall.
Grace will graduate from her nursing program without student debt, thanks to Maryland and Baltimore County College Promise scholarships.
“CCBC is so helpful with financial aid. They give you every step, every resource,” she says.
A work-study role in the Office of Student Engagement helps Grace cover the cost of scrubs and other supplies while supporting her peers — whether by connecting them with campus resources or encouraging them to use the student food lockers.
“There’s no shame in coming to us for a pack of ramen or a bag of chips if you’re hungry. That’s what we’re here for," she says.
Grace plans to earn her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and one day return to CCBC — as a clinical instructor helping others pursue their own rewarding paths.