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Jalen Snyder-Scipio '17

A Little Perseverance. A Little Revolutionary.

How leading a double life as a student athlete and a nursing student gives Jalen Snyder-Scipio ’17 the strength to be selfless

Jalen Snyder-Scipio ’17 is not your average student athlete; he combines grit on the football field with compassion as a nursing student. Sound impossible? Not at Moravian University. Snyder-Scipio thrives in two pursuits that, on the surface, couldn’t be more different. But not without humility, effort, and an attitude that can turn any situation into an opportunity.

Snyder-Scipio transferred to Moravian University in the spring of 2013 from Duquesne University where he played division I football on scholarship. Grappling with the decision to pursue pharmacy or nursing while balancing a heavy athletic load, he decided that a change was needed. “I wasn’t really comfortable out there and I was looking for a place that was closer to home,” he says. “I just found Moravian nursing as a great opportunity and took that and ran with it.”

The Allentown, Pa., native didn’t miss a beat: Snyder-Scipio quickly became a leader both in the classroom and on the field. Snyder-Scipio quickly found a common denominator between the two—consistent hard work—and uses the same mentality to conquer both worlds. “Nursing is definitely a tough major, it requires a lot of work and study and so does football,” he says. “You must practice well in order to play well so having a good work ethic in the classroom when I am studying and a good work ethic on the field as well.”

A star receiver and co-captain of the Moravian University football team, Snyder-Scipio is a leader of teammates and serves as a calming presence for the offense. So much so, that teammates ask him about ailments. “It helps being a nursing major because you can care for yourself and your body.” he says. “I will feel a tweak in my muscle and connect it with a condition I learned in class.”

Karen Groller, professor of nursing, has witnessed his leadership and quiet-dedication first-hand. “Jalen is quite the gentle giant. In our Nursing's Student Development and Progression, he continues to demonstrate compassionate leadership by listening to his classmates, recognizing his own values, and incorporating evidence into a just decision for the student community,” she says. “His commitment to teamwork, a skill he probably refined on the football field, is evident from always offering to assist a fellow peers on the clinical unit with various care tasks that often require more than one person to perform safely.”

Snyder-Scipio shrugs off his own stature. Admired by his peers and respected by those he learns from, Snyder-Scipio embodies the same true humility of his fellow Hounds--a quality he sees as a strength. “One of my football coaches used to say, ‘Great leaders are also great followers.’ We all feed off each other. It is similar in nursing where we work as a team to get everything done.”

And as a nurse, getting everything done can be a life or death situation. Is he ready? He’s on his way. “Jalen stood out as a student who paid attention to detail,” says Deborah Halliday, one of Jalen’s nursing instructors. “During his clinical testing I was impressed with how much he learned and demonstrated with his assessment techniques.”

Snyder-Scipio is already feeling the passion for his chosen path. His double life won’t end with graduation, he looks to continue his education in nursing by getting a masters degree and also is interested in coaching football after getting his degree from the University. “Nursing is a gentle profession; the nurse is going to be the one who does everything for a patient,” he says. “I like being the one people look to when they’re not at their strongest.”

This spring, the wide receiver took part in the University's Global Health elective course that included a mission trip to Honduras. Over the semester, the students enrolled in the Global Health course learned about different health disparities that affect populations globally including things such as socioeconomic status, political structure, availability of resources, etc. The class also looked at major health problems across the globe including parasitic infections, malnutrition, communicable disease, clean water and sanitation issues, amongst many others. The students learned about all of these issues both globally and in Honduras. Much of the semester was spent looking at the distribution of healthcare, disparities in healthcare, comparing healthcare systems and outcomes, and how culture can affect all of these things.

Part of the course was a seven-day trip to Honduras during Moravian's Spring Break in early March. Snyder-Scipio documented the trip by video and submitted a review as part of his final project for the semester. Take a look: