Becoming a Doctor While Quarantined.

Dr. Kalah Regis

Graduate of Stanford University.

We can’t always see all of the trauma our students deal with, and this is why we create a safe space in our classroom as we tackle the difficult issues in their lives. “I didn’t really think I needed to be in the classroom,” shared Kalah Regis, “but I liked doing anything school related. But I wasn’t sure what my reason was for being there.”

One night in the class we were discussing gun violence, and Kalah, then a junior in high school spoke up. “I started talking about a boy I was dating. I really cared about him and was ready to introduce him to my family after the Christmas and New Year’s holiday.” She talked to him all the time, and when he didn’t pick up her calls after New Year’s Eve, she knew something was wrong. She went to his neighborhood a few days later and found out the tragic news. “I was devastated when I learned he had been shot. I knew in my heart that he should’ve stayed inside on New Year’s and told him that, but he didn’t.” They had both shared their dreams about going to college and what their futures might look like. The pain was paralyzing, but Alive & Free was where Kalah could talk and share her experience. Although it took many years to overcome her loss, Kalah was able to lean on her Alive & Free family as she worked through her very real feelings. “Alive & Free taught me that I could do everything perfectly when it came to school life, but if I didn’t straighten up what was going on in real life, I would go down the wrong path. They taught me things I thought I already knew, but didn’t.”

Kalah always knew she wanted to go to college. “My mother had me as a teenager. She went to Alabama State University and I used to go on the college campus with her.” Kalah applied to the University of Alabama Birmingham where she earned her nursing degree. She kept going and worked on her Masters’ thesis analyzing how firefighters are exposed to cancer-causing agents while on the job. She was then accepted into the Doctorate program at Stanford University. And although 2020’s pandemic has kept Kalah from walking across the stage, it did not stop her from earning her Doctorate. She is now Dr. Kalah Regis DNP-Doctorate of Nursing Practice. She is currently working in Alabama hospitals on the frontlines during these times where Covid-19 is taking lives. “Alive & Free is my second family and I’m proud to be one of the 250 college graduates!”

We are thrilled with the achievements of Kalah and all of our 250 college graduates. We have watched them grow, mature and succeed and launch their careers in life. They have proven that your investment in them and in Alive & Free pays off. Indeed, this amazing milestone could not have been achieved without your support. Thank you so much. Let’s keeps on creating milestones. It’s on to the next 250!