But growing up with a single mom, Escudero wasn’t sure how to pay for college, so he joined the U.S. Navy following high school. The experience only cemented his determination to find a way to pursue medicine.

As a member of the VCU School of Nursing Class of 2027, he views his past experiences as building blocks to his future.

Last year, he received support for his education through the School of Nursing’s Per Aspera ad Astra: Emerging Nurse Leaders Scholarship. Escudero embodies the scholarship’s translation from Latin: “through hardships to the stars.”

“I’m in a privileged position being born in this country,” said Escudero, whose mother and father came to the U.S. as teen parents from Argentina with his older brother. “I look at my parents and think, if they could do that, I can do this.”

The scholarship was created by School of Nursing alum Elizabeth Ann “Beth” Hoettels, D.N.P., a colonel in the U.S. Air Force, to support students who are in an accelerated nursing program, with a preference for those with a military background or who demonstrate leadership potential.

I didn’t have much guidance growing up, so having somebody supporting you without even knowing you means the world.

Joseph Escudero
VCU School of Nursing, Class of 2027

“I’m a believer in the idea that having the ability to push yourself is important,” Hoettels said. “If there’s somebody out there who really has a dream to become a nurse, I want them to have that opportunity.”

Receiving financial support has allowed Escudero the opportunity to find a balance between work, school and life, something he never imagined possible as someone who was raised by a single mother who worked multiple jobs after his parents divorced when he was young.

“I knew I was capable, but I never thought I’d get here. I didn’t have much guidance growing up, so having somebody supporting you without even knowing you means the world,” said Escudero, who is the first person in both his immediate and extended family to pursue a degree. “It inspires me to one day reach a point when I can give back and help others like I’ve been helped.”

This article originally appeared on the MCV Foundation website.

If you are interested in supporting the VCU School of Nursing, please contact Jess Sorensen, the school’s senior director of development, at (804) 615-5877 or jlsorensen@vcu.edu.