National Park College (NPC) Respiratory Therapy students Taylor Clark and Amy Cofar
were recently awarded the Professional Achievement in Respiratory Care (PARC) scholarship
from the Lawrence Respiratory Foundation. The award is an $1,800 scholarship established
to support senior students in the Respiratory Therapy program.
Scholarship recipients are required to have a minimum 3.0 GPA, be a member of the
American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) and the Arkansas Society for Respiratory
Care (ASRC), and participate in an interview with scholarship board members.
A Little Rock native, Clark began the respiratory therapy program at NPC to learn
how to care for an ill family member. “I started the program with a very sick mom
with end-stage COPD,” Clark said. “NPC’s hours were more convenient for me to be able
to be by my mom’s side at the hospital as well as be in school, too.”
Clark lost her mother earlier this year. Inspired by her journey, Clark plans to continue
her quest to help others in her memory. “Receiving this scholarship means a lot to
me,” Clark said. “I don’t accept any loans or tuition and I pay for everything out
of pocket. This helps me so much. After NPC, I plan to pursue my bachelor’s degree
online through the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and explore
other hospitals in different states.”
A Lake Hamilton High School graduate, Cofar chose NPC because it is close to home.
“My grandmother inspired me to follow this path,” Cofar said. “She had COPD and I
was very impressed by the respiratory therapists that were by her side caring for
her. The respiratory therapy program at NPC allowed me to be closer to home so I could
spend more time with my grandmother and my family.”
After NPC, Cofar plans to continue her education to become a geriatric respiratory
therapist. “Receiving this scholarship means a lot to me because I can now pay off
my tuition without using up all of my current scholarships,” Cofar said. “After NPC,
I want to get my bachelor’s degree at UAMS while working part time to grow my skill
sets.”
“Both Taylor and Amy are personable and articulate with positive attitudes about the
career path they have chosen,” Lawrence Respiratory Foundation Chair Gretchen Lawrence
said. “Both know what their role will be in the healthcare setting, not only because
of having clinicals as part of their curriculum, but also because they have had friends
and family members with lung conditions that were serious enough to bring them to
the hospital for care.”
Pictured left to right is Amy Cofar, Gretchen Lawrence and Taylor Clark.
