Hassan Hammoud wins nursing scholarship from Rotary Club
The Rotary Club of Dearborn recently awarded HFC student Hassan Hammoud the Dearborn Rotary/Henry Ford College Nursing Scholarship, which was established 18 years ago.
“This was an unexpected honor,” said Hammoud, a lifelong Dearborn resident.
While attending Fordson High School – from which he graduated in 2017 – Hammoud was dual enrolled at HFC. Hammoud will graduate with his associate degree in nursing from HFC in December. Currently, he is a full-time extern in the neurology department at Beaumont Hospital Dearborn, the same hospital in which he was born.
Nursing is a family tradition in Hammoud’s family. His older brother, his cousin, and his uncle are all nurses. In fact, his cousin Hussein Saad is a 2019 alumnus of HFC’s nursing program.
“I’m very passionate about the nursing profession. I just had a genuine sense from a young age that I wanted to help people,” said Hammoud. “Nursing felt accessible to me to really help people. I like that idea a lot.”
A terrific nursing program
“My heart was open for HFC,” he said. “I have enjoyed it very much. There’s very good teamwork here between the faculty and the staff. The communication, especially from the president, is exceptional. Plus, the College is close to home, the classes are well-managed, and it’s a good system. It’s set up very easily in terms of how you sign up for classes. When it comes to the difficulty level of the classes, it’s up to you to study and work hard.”
Upon graduation from HFC, Hammoud will transfer to Eastern Michigan University, where he will continue his undergraduate education. He plans eventually to earn his master’s degree.
“If I could get my bachelor’s degree from HFC, I would,” he said. “Since I can’t, I’m going to EMU.”
Though it’s been challenging, Hammoud called HFC’s nursing program “terrific.”
“The instructors here are amazing and have shared some of their amazing experiences in the classroom," he said. "One of my instructors, Nancy Borkin, worked as an ER nurse for 24 years, so I’m learning from the best. Their drive is to make students genuinely good nurses so the world continually has genuinely good nurses.”
Borkin explained why the level of instruction is so critical to student success. “Instructors who are current in practice can bring real-life situations into the classroom help students learn and pull things together,” she said. “It is so much more than just reading a book. I graduated from the HFC nursing program and came back to pay it forward as an instructor. I am thrilled that I could be a part of Hassan’s nursing journey. Hassan is so friendly, so eager to learn, and has shown leadership in and out of the classroom. His involvement in the Student Faculty Committee, the Inside Track Mentoring Program and other volunteer work are indicators of what a great addition he will be to the profession. I look forward to Hassan following in my footsteps and working with him as a colleague someday.”
Desire to return to HFC to teach nursing
Borkin’s example has inspired Hammoud to return later in his career and become a nursing instructor – preferably at HFC.
“I want to teach for the same reason the nursing instructors do what they do for us today. I want to get to a point where I’ve learned enough about the field and can teach people what they need to be successful,” he said.
He has also found meaning beyond the classroom. He cites a quote about the profession that resonates with him: “So often we’re teaching people how to do it, but we’re not teaching how to be while doing it.”
“How we’re supposed to be while doing whatever it is we’re doing is very important in nursing,” he said. “As a nurse, you get to experience all the emotions you’re supposed to feel as a human being – the relief of someone who’s been in the hospital for 30 days and gets to finally go home, the grieving process of someone who passed away. To see all this gives you proof in life of purpose.”
The Rotary scholarship program
"The Rotary Club of Dearborn gives out more than $60,000 in scholarships every year to students in the Dearborn community," said HFC political science professor Dr. Eric Rader. "We are proud of all the students we're able to support in their collegiate work. As the Dearborn Rotary President and a faculty member at HFC, I am particularly gratified that our Club is able to support Hassan and other HFC nursing students in their studies. The cooperative relationship between Dearborn Rotary and HFC goes back many years and is one that I'm proud to continue.”