![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/106\/2019\/09\/margaret_iwu_full-1.jpg?resize=993%2C502&ssl=1\")
Margaret Iwu has yet to take her first class at University of Detroit Mercy, but she already has boundless dreams for her future.<\/p>\nMargaret Iwu has yet to take her first class at University of Detroit Mercy, but she already has boundless dreams for her future.<\/p>\n
\u201cEver since I started watching sports, I always wanted to work at the Mayo Clinic or any environment with athletes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Through the ReBUILDetroit program, Detroit Mercy is helping Iwu realize those dreams.<\/p>\n
ReBUILDetroit, or Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity, is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) initiative with the goal of increasing diversity in biomedical research. The program encourages undergraduate students from underrepresented or economically disadvantaged backgrounds to pursue careers in STEM fields. These students are prepared to pursue doctoral studies through the program\u2019s professional development resources.<\/p>\n
A partnership between Detroit Mercy and Wayne State University, ReBUILDetroit was supported by an initial $21.2 million grant awarded in 2014. The consortium recently received a renewal for more than $19 million over five years and remains the only BUILD program in Michigan.<\/p>\n
With goals centered on medicine, ReBUILDetroit appealed to Iwu.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt sounded like a perfect opportunity for a student like me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Iwu, who is a member of ReBUILDetroit\u2019s fifth cohort, is studying Biochemistry at Detroit Mercy while adhering to a pre-medicine track. She faces a unique challenge during her undergraduate career, in addition to the academic rigors of the program. An accomplished three-sport athlete at Summit Academy High School in Romulus, Mich., Iwu will compete for Detroit Mercy\u2019s varsity track and field team as a thrower, participating in discus, shot put and hammer throw field events.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot many kids from my school can say they\u2019re going to college to play sports,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I feel like that\u2019s almost every athlete\u2019s dream, to play college sports.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Margaret](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/106\/2019\/09\/margaret_iwu_side.jpg?resize=550%2C371&ssl=1\")
Determining which higher education institution to attend is a stressful process for high school students. Iwu\u2019s process was similar, but had another ripple \u2014\u00a0born in Nigeria, she is the first member of her family to attend college in the United States. Both of her parents attended university in the African country before immigrating to the U.S.<\/p>\n
Detroit Mercy appealed to Iwu for several reasons, from its rich, Catholic traditions to small class sizes to location \u2014 she grew up south of the McNichols Campus, near Wyoming Avenue and Fenkell Avenue.<\/p>\n
Iwu said ReBUILDetroit was one of the only college programs to reach out to her, which eased her decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think ReBUILDetroit is important for students like Margaret because it reaffirms that there\u2019s a place for her,\u201d said Theresa Lindsey, Ph.D., Detroit Mercy\u2019s ReBUILDetroit student success coordinator. \u201cAnd that\u2019s what we\u2019re doing. We\u2019re saying: \u2018You belong here and you can thrive in this type of environment.\u2019 So we\u2019re trying to provide her with all the necessary tools to get to the next level. I think it is important to look around and see like-minded students trying to get to where you\u2019re going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lindsey was one of the panelists in Iwu\u2019s interview for acceptance into ReBUILDetroit. What caught Lindsey\u2019s attention was Iwu\u2019s authenticity.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe moves with a purpose and I admire that about her,\u201d Lindsey said.<\/p>\n
ReBUILDetroit students receive a number of benefits through the program, including tuition scholarships, paid faculty-mentored research, extensive mentoring by faculty and peers in and outside the classroom, curriculum support and programming to prepare them for graduate studies and opportunities to present research at national conferences.<\/p>\n
Iwu is already experiencing the dividends through ReBUILDetroit\u2019s Summer Enrichment Program or SEP. The eight-week program readies incoming freshmen and transfer students for the rigors of ReBUILDetroit and creates a support network for students to lean on.<\/p>\n
Through SEP, Iwu and her ReBUILDetroit peers are exposed to a variety of classes, training and educational workshops. It is much more than typical classwork \u2014 Iwu discovered she enjoys farming and gardening, and interactions with a host of biomedical professionals have inspired her to get started as a first-year ReBUILDetroit student.<\/p>\n
\u201cReBUILD has put me on track to be a successful student in college,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Balancing life as a young adult and ReBUILDetroit\u2019s academic responsibilities is not a simple task. Throwing in collegiate athletics at NCAA\u2019s Division I level adds another challenging layer.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re both extremely high priority in my life and I will try my hardest to excel in both ReBUILD and track and field, because those are the two things that brought me here,\u201d Iwu said. \u201cThat\u2019s something I thank God for every day, to be able to have an opportunity like this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Iwu is attacking the opportunity with determination, a glowing smile and an encouraging motto: \u201cEvery ReBUILD student has to find a way,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Original story by Ricky Lindsay<\/a>. Follow Detroit Mercy on\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>. Have a story idea? Let us know by\u00a0submitting your idea<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Margaret Iwu has yet to take her first class at University of Detroit Mercy, but she already has boundless dreams for her future. \u201cEver since …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":3233,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[6],"tags":[47,1620,1622,1621,1327,1221,1222,17,404,165],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/106\/2019\/09\/margaret_iwu_full-1.jpg?fit=1920%2C971&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbwnTV-Q6","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3230"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3230"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3230\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3235,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3230\/revisions\/3235"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}