Student Life: Briana Gordon

Here’s how a criminology major found a new passion in nursing.

by Dane Harter

“During my second semester at Ohio State, I got a call that my dad was in a medical-induced coma, and I didn’t know what to think. He had sepsis. As someone who didn’t know anything about medical stuff, I was just like, ‘What is that?’ ” said Briana Gordon, who at the time was a criminology major in her first year at Ohio State.

“My mom said, ‘I got it, don’t worry about it!’ She was very protective, and didn’t want me to see any of that.” 

But Briana couldn’t stop worrying about her father. “Health is very important,” she said, “so if I could, I wanted to learn everything about it.”

While she was unable to visit her father, she became fascinated with learning about his treatment. This research sparked her interest in pursuing a BSN instead of a criminology degree. 

Now in her fourth year at Ohio State, Briana thinks about her future as a nurse. “You’re about to give your life to nursing,” she said, “and you want to, but it can be tough at times.” Her sister, though, taught her to never give up. “She’s probably my biggest mentor and inspiration,” she said. “Our parents didn’t go to college, so we’re both first-gen students, and she graduated from Ohio State and works in the House of Representatives now. So, if she can do it, I can do it, too.”

Last year, both her grandmother and a close friend died suddenly between Thanksgiving and Christmas, leaving her shattered. To get through it, Briana remembered that she wanted more than what she grew up with. She was raised in English Woods, a socioeconomically disadvantaged region in Cincinnati. “Drug dealers and street fights riddle the area,” she said. “I don’t think that anyone who lives there wants to stay. I always wanted better for myself.”

Briana is determined to reach her version of success. “A lot of people define success as money, and of course that’s great, but I’ll know I’m successful when I can help my family out. That’s it.” 

Briana is a recipient of The John Hunter, MD, and Toni Pegg Hunter, RN, Endowed Scholarship Fund for Nursing. “This scholarship has allowed me to worry less about how I am going to pay for college. Instead, I am able to focus on finishing college, because I know I have people supporting me,” she said.

“I’m excited about the future, because it doesn’t end here with nursing post-grad. I want to go straight into nursing, but I do plan on going back to school; I’m just not sure for what yet.” Currently, Briana works as a student nurse assistant at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. After graduating this spring, she hopes to work and specialize in the NICU. 

“I love giving back and caring for others,” she said, “so I think nursing was meant to be my path.”