Giving back to community
Alumnus Bianca Crisp is determined to use her skills and opportunities to give back to her community. After graduating in 2022 with a Bachelor of Health Science, the proud Wiradjuri woman has returned to Griffith to work as a Tutoring for Success Program Officer for GUMURRII, a dedicated support unit for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
Bianca Crisp
“I wouldn't have been able to survive uni without GUMURRII’s support, especially the tutoring that I was offered. To be able to help current students in the way that I was supported while I was a student is really special,” she says.
“It’s a real highlight to see the difference that it makes to the students. It’s great hearing the feedback from students on how the tutoring has helped them achieve a grade, become more confident or improve their skills.”
“If we can help other First Nations students achieve to the best of their ability in their degrees, that's really amazing,” she says.
Bianca’s desire to help others doesn’t end there—she’s determined to return to Griffith to pursue a Doctor of Medicine degree. “I've known since I was in school that I wanted to become a doctor,” she explains.
“As I've gone through my journey of rediscovering my culture and my heritage, I've identified that I want to use it as an opportunity to make a difference to the lives of other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; to be able to give back to communities and to help close the gap.”
“I've been really fortunate and lucky to be provided with all these opportunities, so I really want to make the most of it and make as much difference as I can,” Bianca says.
But that Doctor of Medicine will have to wait for now, as Bianca is also a competitive open water swimmer, and has recently returned from a competition in Israel where she qualified for the Australian Dolphins Swim Team.
“It’s my first time being an Australian Dolphin, so I’m very excited,” she says. “I'll be competing in July in Japan at the 2023 World Swimming Championships in the 5km open water swim. It’s been my goal ever since I started swimming to make the Australian Team and to wear that green and gold uniform, and I feel so proud to be able to represent my country.”
She has her sights set on competing at the Paris Olympics next year, but she’s very keen to get back to Griffith to study that Doctor of Medicine when she can.
Griffith is particularly special for Bianca, as she’s recently discovered she was the third generation of women in her family to study at the University. “We were all discussing it and I only recently found out my nan went here as well as my mum! Three generations of Griffith alumni, so there’s a huge history there,” she says.
“But the reason that we studied here isn't just because all our family went here, it's because of Griffith itself and the values that underpin the University as a whole. My sister is now in her second year of a Bachelor of Physiotherapy here and loving it as well.”
And Bianca is determined to make not only her immediate family of Griffith alumni proud, but also her ancestors and those that have paved the way before her.
"It really extends past just the last three generations and it goes back through my whole family and their history and my culture—what they went through so I can be where I am now,” Bianca explains.
“I think with each generation, we keep making more progress. And if I can make previous generations proud by making a better future for the next generations, then I think that's something amazing.”
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