Hidden Gems: Meet Chikilia Parks of Institute for Future Registered Nurses, Inc.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chikilia Parks.

Hi Chikilia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My story really begins long before I became a nurse or founded the Institute for Future Registered Nurses.

I grew up experiencing circumstances that could have easily limited what I believed was possible for my life. My father was absent for much of my early childhood, and although he later became a part of my life, I lost him when I was just 18 years old and beginning college. That loss, along with other challenges I experienced growing up, forced me to mature quickly and taught me how important support, encouragement, and having someone believe in you can be.

My path into nursing was not necessarily a perfectly mapped-out journey, but it became one of the most transformative decisions of my life. Over the past decade, nursing has allowed me to care for people during some of their most vulnerable moments, but it has also given me the opportunity to educate, mentor, lead, and support other healthcare professionals as they grow.

As my career progressed, I became increasingly interested in what happens before someone becomes a nurse. I remembered what it felt like to be a student trying to figure things out, and I began thinking about the many nursing students who are balancing demanding coursework and clinical experiences while also managing jobs, families, finances, transportation, and everyday life.

At the same time, we continue to hear about the nursing shortage and the growing need for qualified nurses. I kept coming back to one question: If we desperately need more nurses, what are we doing to support the students who have already chosen this path?

That question ultimately became the foundation for the Institute for Future Registered Nurses, Inc. (IFRN), a nonprofit organization I founded to support and advocate for future nurses throughout their educational journey.

Through IFRN, my goal is to help remove some of the practical barriers nursing students face, connect them with resources and opportunities, and remind them that there is a community rooting for their success. I believe supporting nursing students is about much more than helping one individual graduate. Every student we help move closer to becoming a nurse has the potential to impact thousands of patients, families, and communities throughout their career.

Today, I am grateful that my journey has brought together so many parts of who I am — nurse, educator, mentor, leader, and now nonprofit founder. What once felt like separate experiences in my life now make sense as pieces of the same story.

I know what it feels like to navigate difficult seasons and still keep moving forward. That perspective has shaped the kind of leader I want to be and the work I feel called to do.

I often think about IFRN through one simple idea: before someone becomes the nurse who will one day care for you or someone you love, they are a student trying to make it through the journey.

I want to make sure those students know they do not have to make that journey alone.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has definitely not been a smooth road, but I have learned that some of the most meaningful parts of my journey were shaped by the seasons that were the hardest. I have received MANY “no’s”.

Starting IFRN brought an entirely different set of challenges. Having a vision is one thing; building an organization around that vision is another. There is the work of establishing credibility, finding resources, developing partnerships, creating programs, raising awareness, and sometimes having to explain why supporting nursing students deserves greater attention. Much of that work happens behind the scenes, long before anyone sees the results.

One of the biggest lessons I have learned is that you cannot always wait until you have every resource, every connection, or every detail figured out before you begin. Sometimes you have to start with what you have, remain committed to the purpose, and allow the vision to grow as you do.

The struggles along the way have actually influenced how I lead today. They have made me more aware of how powerful it can be when someone feels seen, supported, and encouraged during a difficult season. That is a large part of what I want IFRN to provide for future nurses.

I would never say that every part of the journey has been easy, but I can say that every part of it has taught me something. Looking back, many of the experiences that once felt like obstacles are now the very experiences that help me understand why this work matters so much.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Institute for Future Registered Nurses, Inc.?
The Institute for Future Registered Nurses, Inc. (IFRN) is a nonprofit organization created to support nursing students before they become the professionals our communities will one day depend on.

At the heart of IFRN is a simple belief: if we want a stronger nursing workforce tomorrow, we have to invest in nursing students today.

So much of the conversation around the nursing shortage focuses on recruitment, employment, and retention after someone becomes a nurse. IFRN intentionally focuses earlier in the journey. We are asking: What do nursing students need while they are still trying to make it through school, clinicals, work, family responsibilities, financial pressures, and everything else that comes with preparing for this profession?

Our work centers on supporting future nurses through practical resources, encouragement, advocacy, educational opportunities, community engagement, and strategic partnerships. One of our signature initiatives is providing nursing student care packages filled with items that may seem simple on the surface but can make a meaningful difference during an intense semester.

What sets IFRN apart is that we look at the nursing student as a whole person. Becoming a nurse is not just an academic journey. Students are also managing transportation, food, clinical supplies, uniforms, personal-care needs, employment, family obligations, and financial decisions that may have nothing to do with a textbook but can absolutely affect whether they are able to continue their education. We want to help address some of those realities.

Our approach is also collaborative. We believe the future nursing workforce is not solely the responsibility of nursing schools or healthcare organizations. There is an opportunity for businesses, community organizations, healthcare leaders, donors, nurses, and everyday people to participate in strengthening the pipeline of future nurses.

One of the things I am most proud of about the IFRN brand is that we are building an organization that feels both purposeful and personal. I never want a nursing student to feel like they are simply a number in a workforce statistic. Behind every conversation about a nursing shortage is a real person studying for an exam, preparing for clinical, working a shift, caring for a family, or trying to figure out how to afford the next thing they need for school. Those are the people IFRN exists for.

Our High 5 Campaign is one example of how we are making participation accessible. The idea is that meaningful impact does not always have to begin with a huge donation. Small contributions, donated products, corporate partnerships, and simply sharing our mission can collectively create significant support for nursing students.

As we continue to grow, I want IFRN to become known as an organization that stands beside future nurses throughout their journey and brings greater visibility to what it truly takes to become one.

Before someone becomes the nurse who cares for your child, supports your loved one through an illness, notices that something is wrong, advocates for a patient, or holds a family member’s hand during one of the most vulnerable moments of their life, they are a nursing student. They are learning. They are sacrificing. They are becoming.

IFRN wants to make sure they are supported along the way. Ultimately, I want readers to know that when they support IFRN, they are not simply supporting a student. They are investing in the future of healthcare and in the nurses who will one day care for all of us.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
I would say resilience has been one of the most important qualities to my success, but not resilience for the sake of simply pushing through. For me, it has been resilience rooted in purpose.

There have been many moments in my life and career when the path was unclear, when resources were limited, or when things did not happen as quickly as I hoped. What has helped me continue is knowing why the work matters.

I have learned that success is not always about having the perfect plan or the perfect timing. Sometimes it is about being willing to keep showing up, keep learning, keep adjusting, and keep moving forward even when the outcome is not immediately visible.

That mindset has shaped the way I approach nursing, leadership, and building IFRN. I am willing to start small, listen, make changes, and continue building as long as I know the work is serving a meaningful purpose.

I also think resilience has taught me to see challenges differently. Instead of viewing every obstacle as a sign to stop, I try to ask what the experience is teaching me and how it can make the work stronger.

Ultimately, I believe purpose gives resilience direction. When you are deeply connected to why you started, it becomes much easier to keep going when the road gets difficult. That has been one of the greatest lessons of my journey and one of the qualities I continue to rely on as I grow.

Pricing:

• $5 donations for our #Give5toHelp5 Campaign

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ifrn.org/donate
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ifrnofficial?igsi=MTM2MjNnNDY3anplag==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/19Y5XGjs9K/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chikilia-p-aab933176