By Kaitlyn Parker, External Affairs Intern
Golden LEAF Scholar Alumna Naziera Staton grew up in New Bern in Craven County. As a self-motivated individual, she always knew that she wanted to go to college.
“Growing up, for me, was very rural, very low income,” said Staton. “The trajectory was usually high school to workforce or trades. You could only go to college if you had enough financial assistance and push to do it. I was very self-motivated to do something different.”
Strong mentorship throughout Staton’s schooling significantly impacted her drive to attend college. In elementary school it was her librarian and in middle and high school it was the teachers who taught her to study, write, and most importantly, prepare for college. Staton graduated from East Carolina University where she earned both a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and master’s degree in Social Work.
She shared that her mentors made her into the person she is today.
“Having friends, family, and coworkers who were on a similar path of school kept me motivated,” said Staton. “They pushed me to where I am now, all of those people, molding me from my youth. My friend from high school and I were applying for scholarships, and her stepmother told me the Golden LEAF Scholarship would be beneficial because I was from a rural, lower income family. When I read up on it I realized it definitely sounded like something I could do.”
The Golden LEAF Scholarship was a turning point in Staton’s ability to attend a four year university.
“My financial aid didn’t fully cover my tuition,” Staton said. “So, I had to try to figure out a plan before the payment deadline. The Golden LEAF Scholarship definitely impacted college. I don’t think that I would’ve been able to attend without it. The day of the deadline, that’s when my scholarship finally came through. I could have had a different path. I could have been dropped from my classes and not gone to college. So, receiving the money over four years helped me not just manage my ability to go to college, but pay for necessities.”
For Staton, the scholarship represented more than a financial incentive to attend college, but an opportunity which provided students from a rural background the necessary tools to succeed.
“The importance of the rural community was an incentive to apply for the scholarship,” said Staton. “Applying for scholarships can be hard because everyone’s doing them. So, prioritizing people from a rural area who might not have laptops, phones, or even wifi, was definitely beneficial.”
During the completion of her Master’s of Social Work, strong mentorship and support from professors and coworkers helped Staton thrive. She had an internship with Integrated Family Services, and the crisis center made her think on her toes, molding her into the therapist she is today. Mentors within her internship helped Staton with her licensure and learn to build connections within her industry placement.
The first role Staton had following the completion of her master’s was providing in-home therapy services for children who needed a higher level of care. In her current role, Staton practices office-based therapy at Pride in NC, LLC, in Greenville, which provides therapeutic services to individuals and families.
Where once she received mentorship on college opportunities, now Staton provides the same resources to others.
“I work in a rural area that needs a lot of help, not just with mental health or substance abuse, but just with basic needs,” Staton said. “I’ve even told clients about the Golden LEAF Scholarship, and they’ve applied. It’s about giving back to the community I came from, more than just what is expected of me, but my resources and knowledge.”
For Staton, being a part of rural North Carolina connects you to a network of individuals with a diverse set of skills and experiences.
“I think being a part of rural North Carolina is so complex because there is a spectrum of people,” said Staton. “There’s great food, people, and the biggest one: community. There is a lot of skill diversity in these communities that does not necessarily get highlighted. So, rural North Carolina is its own little nugget of the world that’s bursting with a lot of different attributes.”