Jarrod Bullard was notified in July that he received the Foster G. McGaw Scholarship from the Foundation of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
A graduate student in UNC Pembroke’s Master of Public Administration (MPA) program, Bullard will receive a one-time, $5,000 award. He is an outstanding student with a 4.0 grade point average who expects to graduate in December 2013.
Dr. Nicolas Giannatasio, a faculty member in the MPA program and coordinator of the Healthcare Management Track, wrote a letter of recommendation for Bullard.
“He is an exceptional student, and his work really stood out as quality graduate work,” Dr. Giannatasio said. “He is a member of Pi Alpha Alpha, the national honor society of public administration. I met his family at the PAA induction dinner, and they were very proud of him.
“I predict great things from him in the future and he will continue to bring honor to UNCP,” he said.
Good things have become routine for Bullard, who is a 2011 UNCP graduate who grew up in the nearby Prospect community. He will work as a paid graduate assistant during the 2013-14 academic year. He is a paid intern this summer with the Hoke County Health Department.
“This summer, I am grant writing and working in policy development, marketing and accreditation,” Bullard said. “It started as an unpaid internship as a requirement of the MPA program, and the Health Department asked me to work as a paid intern this summer.”
In the healthcare administration track of UNCP’s MPA program and a student member of the American College of Healthcare Administrators (ACHE), he wants to continue his education and work in hospital administration.
As an undergraduate, “I was a biology major with the plan to become a medical doctor,” Bullard said. “I did several internships, and I felt it wasn’t for me. I am still committed to healthcare and helping people, but in a different way now.”
His master’s thesis was on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, an invaluable research topic for any future healthcare administrator.
“I researched its impact on Medicaid and Medicare,” Bullard said. “It will have an impact on rural communities like this, but because the state chose not to expand the Medicaid program, I am not sure how we will be able to cover the elderly.”
Bullard plans to apply to UNC-Chapel Hill’s Master of Health Administration program and get a Ph.D. He said UNCP’s MPA program has been a good one for him and helped him settle on a career.
“I’ve gained leadership skills, and through the internship, I’ve gotten experience in the field,” he said. “I’ve gotten financial help too.”
Bullard received the Catching the Dream Scholarship from UNCP’s endowment and was notified in July that he was one of 22 recipients of the new Arrowhead Scholarship, valued at $1,887.