We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sandra Coker. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sandra below.

Sandra, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

If you ask me, choosing to give up my 20s and hundreds of thousands of dollars to pursue a dream that no one else in my family had dared dream was quite the risk. The sacrifice is the risk on this journey. Becoming a doctor was always my goal, but I had no idea what it would take to accomplish this goal nor did I have any idea that this dream would give birth to many other dreams along the way. I took the risk of taking the hard route and making the decision to pursue a career in medicine when there were many other easier routes to take. I didn’t know it then but the academic road to medicine was not made for people who look like me. The academic road to a career in medicine has a history of excluding Black students who have similar dreams to be the first doctor in their family. We are mistreated and excluded in academic spaces while the system reveals its many barriers set in place long we existed. So the risk was choosing to persist against all odds and create Black Girl White Coat, my nonprofit organization, in order to help other students who chose to take the same risk. As for the way it turned out…as they say, high risk = high reward. I consider it a privilege to be where I am today, in a position to help my patients, my students and mentees, and my community.

Sandra, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Black Girl White Coat is a social media based nonprofit 501(c)3 organization that provides guidance, representation, mentorship, and scholarship to Black and Latinx students pursuing careers in healthcare. We exist to support the next generation of underrepresented minority students healthcare professionals.

Our pillars are Representation, Mentorship, and Scholarship.

Through our flagship Mentorship Program, we have been able to match over 500 students with mentors all across the country in various healthcare professions. We believe that sound mentorship is key to the success of our students. In the coming year, we are looking to build out our Mentorship platform and curriculum.

We also offer Scholarships to our BGWC Community because we understand that the financial burden of committing to this career path is one of the unspoken barriers for many students. To date, BGWC has awarded over $8,000 by way of annual scholarships. This year we hope to raise enough money to double our 2021 scholarship award amount of $5000! We are only able to give as much as we get as we are an organization that runs on donations.

The best way to get to know more about Black Girl White Coat is to visit us online, subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on social media.

BlackGirlWhiteCoat.org
IG – @_BlackGirlWhiteCoat_
Twitter – @_BGWC_

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Transparency. I think the way I built BGWC off of personal stories and experiences helped build my community. I made sure I was open and honest about the good and the bad, the highs and the lows. When you do this it helps others get to know who you are and relate to you on a deeper level.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Talking about my business whenever I get the chance. I speak about it at my (other) job, I wear my BGWC t-shirts on airplanes and use it as a convo starter, and I spread the word in person when I can. Word of mouth goes a long way and you never know who you may be speaking with or who may overhear your conversation.

Contact Info:

• Website: BlackGirlWhiteCoat.org
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/_blackgirlwhitecoat_
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandra-coker/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BGWC_
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BlackGirlWhiteCoat