Birmingham Black Nurses Association, Children’s of Alabama Help Next Generation Envision a Future in Nursing

By Mia Watkins | For The Birmingham Times

A group of middle school students left the 2026 Summer Nurse Camp at Children’s of Alabama with greater clarity about their future careers and with medical skills they can use immediately.

“Everything about it was just so fun,” said 13-year-old Aubree Jones, a student at Phillips Academy. “We learned so many different things. We learned how to do CPR, we learned how to use an EpiPen and what to do when someone is unconscious. I just loved everything about it.”

The camp, in its second year, is a four-day collaboration with the Birmingham Black Nurses Association (BBNA) and Children’s of Alabama. Students get to learn other skills such as suturing, the importance of nutrition and how to change a tracheostomy. They also got to tour the hospital and interact with other health professionals.

Theresa Rodgers, DNP, president of the BBNA, said the goal of the program is to introduce nursing as a career option as students begin to consider what they want to do as adults.

“We give them opportunities to practice doing some of the nursing skills that we do and thinking through what a nurse would have to do,” she said.

The nurses who participate in the camp enjoy giving back to the community and passing on their knowledge, Rodgers said.

“Seeing how the young children just absorb the information that we’re giving them, I think that’s part of it,” she said. “Seeing the enthusiasm of the children, a lot of us didn’t have that opportunity growing up, to have somebody to introduce this to us.”

Nurses giving back

One of the nurses eager to share her knowledge is Jennifer Coleman, who recently retired from Children’s but wanted to come back to participate in the program. She now teaches full-time at Samford University.

“I feel like I’m expanding my calling as a nurse when I’m here,” she said of the camp. “Being a nurse is what I’ve always wanted to do, but being here, when I see the kids’ faces light up, we also have nursing students here, it just helps me know that I’m really fulfilling my calling as a nurse and doing what I was supposed to be doing.”

She said Children’s of Alabama is the perfect place to learn family-centered care.

“When you’re here working as a nurse, it’s like a big family,” she said. “Everybody’s all about the kids and the families who come through here. Every person you interact with, no matter what their job, they’re all focused on the family. I think that sets us apart.”

Jones, who wants to be an anesthesiologist or a pediatric nurse, said she walked away from the camp knowing more about the day-to-day life of a nurse.

“I don’t know what I thought a nurse was, I just knew they listened to your heart with the stethoscope,” she said. “They’ve come a long way since the 1800s. I learned that they not only take care of people’s health, but they’re there for people who are going through mental things.”

This was her second year as a camper. She said it felt amazing to graduate from the program.

“I just feel like I did it,” she said. “I learned more about this environment and being in the hospital. I did it once again.”

Twelve-year-old Jacee Summers said it was her first time participating in the camp.

“I thought it was a really great opportunity for kids like me to get to experience one of the things we would like to do when we get older,” she said.

She wanted to be a nurse before camp, but now her interest has deepened.

“At first, I did want to be an OBGYN, but once I learned about what other nurses do, I actually thought about working in labor and delivery and working at Children’s to help kids and preemies,” she said. “I want to work in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.”

Real-world experience

One of the biggest attractions for the students was the Pediatric Simulation Center at Children’s. There, they used teamwork to practice in real-life emergency scenarios. It’s the only simulation center in Alabama.

“We got to experience what it would actually be like if we were doing CPR on someone or testing their vital signs,” Jones said.

These are skills that they can use even before they get to high school.

“They learned to help somebody if they were choking,” Coleman said. “They could be at school, and someone could choke in the lunchroom. They know now what to do. They have mannequins in the simulation center, so they practiced. What I hope they come away with is that at their age, they can do something to help someone.”

Ultimately, the nurses hope the students learned more about what they can do to help their communities.

“We hope they will choose something in the medical field,” Coleman said. “We prefer nursing, but something in the medical field, and know that they can make a difference.”

To learn more about the Birmingham Black Nurses Association, visit birminghambna.org.