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Jessica Byington’s scholarship came at just the right time.

After two years as a registered nurse at PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham, Byington was poised to begin her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at �������� and take the next step in her career. But something didn’t feel right.

Her mother had passed away unexpectedly the year before, and still grieving, Byington wasn’t sure she was ready to go back to school.

Now in her second quarter of Western’s RN-to-BSN Program, Byington is immersed in public health policy, health information literacy, leadership, and social justice in health care. She’s already rethinking her future, considering new career possibilities beyond bedside nursing.

Her goal is to become a nurse instructor, but leadership roles have also begun to interest her.

“I never thought I wanted to go into leadership,” she says. “But all the classes we’ve taken so far have made me realize how much I want to be involved in making positive change at the hospital level.”

Byington has already put her learning into practice. Her first research paper proposed a more effective way for nurses to evaluate hospital patients for alcohol withdrawal symptoms. She submitted it to Western’s student-run academic journal, Occam’s Razor, and it may soon end up on her supervisor’s desk as well.

Since completing the Associate Degree Registered Nursing Program at Bellingham Technical College in 2022, Byington has worked in the intermediate care unit at St. Joe’s, caring for patients recovering from heart attacks and strokes. Now, she also supervises nursing students on the floor, introducing them to the hands-on basics of patient care.

“I try to straddle that line between being supportive and helping people feel confident,” she says. “But at the same time, I also tell them, ‘You messed this up. Use this as a learning experience.’”

Byington understands how intimidating it can be to feel the weight of responsibility as a new health care provider. Unlike many nursing students, she had no prior experience in health care before nursing school. She came to nursing after years of traveling and working in different fields.

Byington earned her first bachelor’s degree at �������� in 2011, majoring in psychology with a minor in sociology. After graduation, she became a bartender—“I definitely used those psych skills”—then spent about a decade traveling and working abroad, including as an English teacher in Cambodia and Thailand.

Back in the U.S., she initially took science classes at BTC to enter a dental hygienist program, but quickly realized she wanted to learn more than just oral health.

“I became obsessed with learning everything about the body,” she says. “Do you know how many things need to work perfectly for a human body to function? How many things are happening at any given moment? It’s truly amazing that we even exist.”

These days, Byington is fully focused on work and school. “I’m really putting everything I have into doing the best I can right now,” she says.

She’s helped along the way by the Evelyn Schuler Scholarship for Nursing, established in memory of Schuler, a former delivery room nurse and longtime director of Student Health Services at ��������. Schuler’s daughter and son-in-law established and funded the scholarship, but to Byington, the scholarship means much more than money.

“Every little bit counts,” she says. “It’s not just the money—it’s the fact that somebody believes in you. That kind of encouragement can go a long way. Even a small donation can make a big difference.”

��������'s 10th annual Give Day is April 24, 2025

Scholarships help students like Jessica overcome challenges and stay focused on their futures. Your support makes these journeys possible. This �������� Give Day, invest in students and their dreams.