Following Footsteps, Creating Trails

Jessica Boudreaux-Milligan
Student Member at Large

As the new PAEA Student Member at Large, I would like to formally thank the PAEA board and members for welcoming me into the organization so warmly and wholeheartedly during my first public venture with PAEA in Québec. The bar was set very high by my predecessors, and I welcome the challenge to follow in their footsteps and create some new trails along the way. I am anxious to contribute to the enrichment of relationships among AAPA, PAEA, and SAAAPA during my two-year tenure.

As a student, I am about to embark on the clinical phase of my education at Saint Louis University. Previous to my matriculation into the PA program, I played an integral part in the start-up of a diabetic retinopathy screening clinic at a local hospital system in St. Louis. My undergraduate studies focused on veterinary medicine, which led me to a love for medicine in general and eventually to become a part of the PA profession. Education and being an educator have been labors of love in my life. I was a graduate teaching assistant following my undergraduate commencement. This position enabled me to realize some of the inner workings of a collegiate faculty, and related to this, an enthusiasm for leadership activities and teaching.

As the PAEA Student Member at Large, I look forward to developing more leaders within the student ranks. Leadership skills are emphasized at the program level, and I want to build on that foundation by encouraging my peers to participate in leadership positions at the local, state, and national levels. With the “SAAAPA, AAPA & You” presentation offered by the SAAAPA board to student societies, SAAAPA will be able to reach more students each year and promote their awareness, participation, and leadership within all PA organizations in the future. I also look forward to doing my part to promote communication among the PA organizations. As the liaison between PAEA and SAAAPA, I am looking forward to delving into some of the leadership and governmental issues that will face our profession in the coming years.

I would like to thank David Wood, my immediate predecessor, for being a wonderful mentor during the last few months and setting the stage for my tenure on the PAEA board for the next couple of years. I have large shoes to fill and plan to point them in new directions. I invite any and all comments, questions, and suggestions. I can be reached at saaapapaea@yahoo.com. As I embark on the final phase of my education, I am also eager to serve the members and the board of the PAEA on behalf of the students.

Editor’s note: In an effort to make the student director’s position a more effective one for students, the PAEA and SAAAPA boards agreed that the student member at large would no longer sit on the student board as well as the PAEA board; and that the student’s term of service on the PAEA board would be for two years, with an October start date, to coincide with the terms of the other PAEA board members. Jessica Boudreaux-Milligan is the first to serve under the new system.