After having my daughter, Italie, and graduating with my bachelor’s degree in May 2013, I was on top of the world. I had a steady job that enabled me to provide for my daughter. Plus, I continued
to meet with my NFP nurse, Samara, and I was on track to graduate from the Nurse-Family Partnership program.
One day during a home visit, Samara, asked me, “What’s next?” Little did I know that one question would lead me to attend graduate school to pursue a master's degree in Public Administration with a focus of Nonprofit Management. In the summer of 2015, I connected with Nurse-Family Partnership ’s National Service Office to set up an internship with the Policy and Government Affairs team. Serving as the Advocacy Intern, I had the opportunity to work directly with Sarah McGee, now the chief policy and government affairs officer.
While Sarah and I were discussing my goals for the internship, she mentioned creating a program that would allow our graduates to provide feedback and be advocates for Nurse-Family Partnership. I initially thought about creating a parent advisory council with a two-fold purpose. First, to serve as a support to Nurse-Family Partnership acting as a bridge between the organization, first-time moms and stakeholders. Second, the council would serve as an advocacy avenue for our families in order to ensure continued growth and fidelity of the program across the nation. I wanted to build a group that would convene to share ideas, provide support and ensure the advancement by keeping the client perspective central to the evolution and growth of Nurse-Family Partnership. By the end of my internship, I had created the overview, mission, goals and objectives of the council. While wrapping up my internship, Sarah mentioned the hopes of being able to launch the council in a few years.
Fast forward three years and I now work at
Nurse-Family Partnership! I have joined the Policy and Government Affairs team as the parent advocacy coordinator.
The program I envisioned as an intern is now becoming a reality. The Parent Ambassador Program has evolved from an advisory council to a dedicated parent advocacy group. We saw the need and desire for our moms to share their stories. We have the opportunity to mobilize moms in a cohort and be part of the sustainability, growth and awareness of Nurse-Family Partnership through grassroots advocacy.
This year, we invited the first cohort to participate in the Parent Ambassador Program, a two year leadership and training program. The cohort will consist of seven graduates from across the country. They will receive training and support to equip them to become leaders and advocates in their communities. Training topics will include storytelling, media and communications, grassroots advocacy and much more.
It has been a humbling experience to give back to an organization that provided my daughter and I so much. Nurse-Family Partnership moms are eager to share their stories to ensure that every mom who qualifies for the program has an opportunity to receive life-changing support. The Parent Ambassador Program is essential to creating a movement of moms who want their voices to be heard in spaces that have the power to support Nurse-Family Partnership with public dollars.
I am excited to be a part of creating a platform for moms to raise their voice about the transformative work of NFP in their lives and I cannot wait to watch our first cohort of Parent Ambassadors as they take the world by storm.
Geni’s story shows why year after year, Americans rate nursing as the most trusted profession in Gallup’s annual poll. Her expert, compassionate service to first-time moms illustrates the trusting bond at the heart of Nurse-Family Partnership. With the skilled guidance of a personal nurse, moms gain confidence and discover their inner strength, enabling them to build resilient families that can meet whatever challenges life brings.
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