Ms. Tyeast Frank
Bachelor of Science in Education
with emphasis in Speech Language
Pathology and Audiology
Congratulations on your graduation, Tyeast
and on a job well done!
We are VERY proud of you!!
Read Tyeast's story below.
Client’s Story of Triumph after Tragedy
After being thrown out of a car on the Dan Ryan expressway, cheated on, abused mentally and physically by my ex-husband, I was ready for a change. I moved from a big city to an unknown town. A single parent of three children ages 9, 4 and 2. The move was truly an act of faith. I packed up a Budget moving truck and started my journey. The university had many welcoming activities that I participated in to help familiarize myself with the campus and classes. For example, there was a “Check Your Class” day, which provided an opportunity for new students to see where each of their classes were actually located. This helped in many ways. Once I started classes, the instructors made themselves available also. My children have benefited from living on a college campus in many ways. There is a family resource center located in the middle of the Family Housing Units. The FRC offered “Kids Night Out”, after school care and weekly study time. All of these programs help the parent and the children. This program allows parents to study, rest, or have an outing. The university understands that being a parent is just as much a task as attending school. The change has paid high returns and is still paying off. My oldest son is attending one of the best school systems in the state and I love the diversity exposure.
We often receive financial support and spiritual encouragement from WellSpring Center For Hope in Chicago, which has been phenomenal about supporting me in my decision to go away to college. WellSpring keeps us in mind daily and during the holidays. We have received a computer, which has eliminated having to take my children with me to the computer lab. They have also provided my family with clothes and school supplies. WellSpring is a Center For Hope for battered women, but they also have a lot of faith in a single parent like me. I would tell any single parent or battered woman, it would be a lifetime reward to change the environment you have become comfortable in and seeking help is ok. One can do anything if they have faith. The first step is to believe it is possible and then the manifestation is soon to follow. I am a living witness that positive change can happen by changing your surroundings and your environment.
I feel empowered and I am willing to be a role model for anyone who is willing to listen. I still have financial limitations, starting over was not easy but leaving my comfort zone is one of the best things I have ever done for me and my family. Inspite of all that I’ve come through, I am a full time student attending an university. My grade point average is 3.25 on a 4.0 scale. I have received two scholarships (Johnetta Haley Scholarship $1300 & Bessie Davis Scholarship $1700) and I’m currently on the National Dean’s List and listed with the “Who’s Who list of College Students of America”. WellSpring helped me to actualize the power I had within. I remember in a group session being told to journal and write down what I wanted out of life. I did just that and like a miracle, everything I wrote down, I now have. I still have my green journal from Wellspring and keep it to remind me of where I came from and the progress I have made. I had all the odds against me but through support from the Lord, family, friends, and self-determination I was able to break the cycle of violence and now live the healthy and happy life my family deserves.
Student from Chicago wins MLK Scholarship & Humanitarian Award
Tyeast Frank, of Chicago, is the winner of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship and Humanitarian Award for 2005.
Frank, who has maintained a 3.3 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale), received the award and special recognition during the university’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration luncheon on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2005. The award includes a $100 cash stipend and a scholarship that provides tuition and fees, or housing, for one academic year of study.
The Scholarship and Humanitarian Award is given each year by the university to recognize a student for academic excellence and who exemplifies the philosophy of nonviolent social change as demonstrated by The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
A 28-year-old undergraduate pursuing a bachelor of science in Speech Pathology and Audiology toward a career in speech-language pathology, Frank is a single mother raising three children. Despite the difficulties of balancing studies and family care, Frank has managed to be a successful student. “Just as Dr. King is a role model for me, I am a role model for my children,” she said. “Therefore, I have to be a superior role model. Rev. King demonstrated throughout his life that courage was a principle he valued. I feel I have been granted this great influence as well.”
Frank explained that she has faced many obstacles in her life, including domestic violence, but she has survived and is now a volunteer at the center that helped her and her children. While attending school, Frank has been the recipient of several scholarships and recognitions, and is listed in the National Dean’s List Book.
She views a career as a speech-language pathologist as a way to give back to the community. “Martin Luther King embodies a very distinctive role model that I strive to be, so that I not only influence my children, but others, too,” Frank said. “Becoming a speech-language pathologist allows me to help people with different dialects as well as those who acquire a disorder by birth or by accident.
“This scholarship would not only help me and my family, but it would also allow me to educate, involve, and share my experiences with others, just as Dr. King has.”
Ms. Frank is a recipient of our Project H.O.P.E. and is one of our success stories that we share not only with you, but also with our new clients. She is an inspiration to us all.
Stories such as this happen because of your faithful and generous support.
Thank you and God bless you.
