Sidney student earns prestigious RHOP scholarship

According to those who know her best, Sidney High School senior Cody Rowley is a bright, hard working, involved and well organized student with deep-set roots in the community.

In other words, those in the know considered her a perfect candidate for Chadron State College's selective Rural Health Opportunities Program (RHOP).

Not long after Rowley completed the RHOP application and interview process, the decision makers at Chadron State and the University of Nebraska Medical Center came to the same conclusion.

The major driving force behind RHOP is to "recruit and educate traditional students from rural Nebraska who will return to practice in rural areas of the state." In short, RHOP is an investment in the future health care of Nebraskans.

Rowley was among a dozen who were given the opportunity to interview in front of a three-person panel. The panel included two professors from UNMC and a Chadron State chemistry professor. Afterwards there was a lunch at which time she was able to meet with the Dean and with Jill Mack, the head of the Health Professions Department at Chadron.

"It was very nerve wracking, but I went in knowing I just needed to be myself," Rowley said. "I knew they just wanted honest answers."

It was just minutes after leaving the Chadron campus last Friday that Rowley was given the good news. Despite battling some iffy cell-phone reception, the purpose of Mack's call was soon clearly understood. After hanging up, six years of hard work and dreaming had finally reached their planned destination to boundless expressions of joy between mother and daughter.

"I was very surprised to to hear so fast. We were told we wouldn't hear until the following Monday," said Rowley. "After I hung up I started screaming loudly. When I stopped screaming my mother told me how proud she was of me."

Rowley, the daughter of Chris and Lorie Rowley of Lodgepole, will begin her eight-year journey to becoming a Family Practitioner this August when she begins pre-med classes at Chadron State. Among the many advantages to being accepted into RHOP is early acceptance to UNMC. She will also have her tuition paid the next four years.

Rowley's medical school training will begin at UNMC in Omaha beginning in the fall of 2018.

"It's kind of nice to see all the hard work pay off and know my future is planned out," said Rowley.

The itch to study medicine came upon Rowley when she was in the sixth grade. After her grandmother was dagnosed with lukemia, she spent weekends at a hospital in Denver.

"I was very close to my grandmother and I enjoyed the atmosphere at the hospital. I saw how people were helping my grandmother and others," said Rowley. "I decided then that's what I wanted to do."

About three years ago Rowley learned of the RHOP program and has had an eye towards applying for it ever since. Achieving her goal not only required a lot of hard work and focus, but time management. For Rowley it was not just about getting good grades, though she carries an A average.

"She really does do it all," said Tanya Lewis of SHS who wrote a recommendation for Rowley's RHOP application. "As evidenced by her involvement and success, Cody is driven and goal oriented. I also thought that she embodied the spirit of the program: a strong love and commitment to her rural Nebraska roots."

Among her activities include being Secretary/Treasurer of the senior class, President of the Student Council and Skills USA, and a member of the National Honor Society. She was also a starter on the volleyball team and presently is a key player on the basketball team. She has been a part of both teams since she was a freshman.

Somehow she still manages a part-time job at Heather Hausmann Photography.

"I am the advisor for the Student Council and to say that she is my right hand would be an understatement," said Lewis who is also an English and Journalism teacher.

In addition to Lewis, SHS teachers Tyler Shaw and Patricia Welch wrote enthusiastic recommendations on Rowley's behalf.

Welch is a Biology, Anatomy and Environmental Science Teacher and has had the opportunity to observe Rowley excel in disciplines that will be most useful to an aspiring doctor.

Shaw, a Chemistry and Physics Teacher, has had an opportunity to observe Rowley in two distinct environments. He is also the girls varsity basketball coach.

"I have a lot of respect for Cody because of her ability to balance all of these things," said Shaw. "One of the reasons I wrote the letter for Cody is because I got to see her in the classroom and on the basketball court. She is a great student and a great senior leader on our team."