Scholar Stories

When Tammy was in 4th grade, her mother chose to return to their home country of Jordan, so they could immerse their children in the culture. They wanted their children to fully experience their heritage and traditions, know their extended family members, and understand where they come from. Though Tammy had been to Jordan in the past, she had spent her entire life in Chicago, where her mother was a teacher and her father was an entrepreneur. Adjusting to their new life in Jordan was difficult. Tammy and her brother and sister attended Jordan schools, where everything was taught in Arabic.

“The first few months were terrible,” Tammy recalls. “We thought we were good at Arabic. We thought we had some skills, but the first few months proved us wrong. We asked for translators but our request was denied because they thought we could catch up and they were absolutely right.”

While she was living in Jordan, Tammy’s grandfather suffered a brain stroke. After school, her mother would take her to the hospital to visit him. It was at this moment that Tammy realized she wanted to pursue a career in medicine.

“The image of him lying in the hospital bed so weak and fragile, made me resolve that I’d try to help people and want to help people who needed my help.”

Though the arrangement was supposed to be permanent, after a year, Tammy (pictured at right with Chicago HOPE Dollars for Scholars volunteer Mike Kirkeide) and her family moved back to Chicago.

“We weren’t used to the weather or the transportation. There was so much that was foreign to us. My father felt there were limited opportunities. Unemployment has always been high and education was expensive. He thought he would be better off raising us in Chicago.”

But Tammy’s year abroad stuck with her. After seeing how poor medical care was in Jordan, she began to dream not only about becoming a doctor, but also about volunteering for Doctors Without Borders.

“I want to build a hospital in another country. My main goal is to set up a hospital in Jordan. Medical care isn’t the best there. They have a lot of insurance problems. People are turned away from hospitals and sent to who knows where, because they don’t have insurance.”

It was always expected of Tammy and her siblings to go to college, but her parents did not make nearly enough money to pay for all of their children’s education, and Tammy did not want to burden them with providing even a small amount of money towards college. Her only option was to take out student loans and graduate with thousands of dollars in debt, or receive scholarships.

“We don’t make a lot of money at all. I didn’t want to burden my parents with their yearly income going towards my yearly tuition. I didn’t want my parents to have to take out any loans. I was adamant. I was determined that if I didn’t get a scholarship I would take out a loan myself,” she said.

Thankfully, Tammy did receive a number of scholarships, including a $1,000 renewable scholarship from Chicago Hope Dollars for Scholars, a total of $4,000 for college as long as she kept her grades up. Between this scholarship and others she received, Tammy’s entire four years at the University of Chicago are paid for.

“I can’t imagine a way that I could do the things I want to do without going to college,” Tammy said. “The scholarship means a lot to me, and more importantly to my parents. If I hadn’t received the scholarships, they probably would have sent me back to Jordan to study there, where it’s cheaper than the United States. They say that the education is the same, but for a girl whose first language is English, I can’t see that that would have been possible.”

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