Influenced By Others
Dr. Ashanti Jones “Helping one person may not change the whole world, but it could change the world for one person.” By: Rhiana Thomas Ashanti Jones is what you may consider a “woman of letters”. Wife of Frederick “Fred” Jones. She currently resides in Northern Louisiana. I was able to get a chance to do a thorough interview with Jones last week, and needless to say, she did not disappoint! Ashanti Franklin Jones is an African American Physical Therapist who got her first start believe it or not, in her early childhood. You know what they say, “it all starts from home”. She described growing up “in a home filled with love and a “free spirited environment” where she would be allowed to draw on the walls with chalk. Her two-parent household had no strict dynamic. She lived a middle-class lifestyle, her mom being a teacher and her dad holding the title of the head provider. Fast-forwarding to her current home dynamic, Jones is happily married and she claims he “brings out the best” in her. They began dating when she was 17, and together they have 3 children: Sydney Marie Jones, 11, Sophie Marie Jones, 9, and Frederick Douglas Jones II, 4. Back to her early home life, creativity was encouraged and throughout her adolescent years in regards to her academic life, Jones was what you would label as the “average student”. It was not until later in her early childhood that she allowed the school system to influence her mindset on school achievements. As the conversation progressed, we discussed the educational system’s reward formula and how positive reinforcement a/effects a child’s academic life. A young Ashanti (who at the time generally did not stress over making straight A’s), experienced this concept first hand during her elementary school’s award ceremonies. “I would see other kids continually going back and forth getting awards, and I thought, that could be me,” she explained.
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This officially marked the beginning of her GPA shift. In junior high, Jones pursued more extracurricular activities such as band and cheerleading while maintaining an “A” average GPA. It wasn’t until her sophomore year in high school that her introduction to HOSA, Health Occupations Students of America, an organization that provides students interested in the medical field opportunities to enrich their knowledge of health career pathways and participate in national medical related competitions, that she mentally established her desired career: physical therapy. During one particular experience shadowing workers in a hospital, she got the chance to view physical therapists practicing therapeutic activities, such as dynamic balance training displayed as tossing balls back and forth to one another. She was curious stating, “what job pays professionals to play with balls”, she laughs. Little did she know that there was so much more involved in this activity. Upon her 1999 high school graduation, she immediately enrolled in a Summer Prep Program the same year. She graduated from a HBCU, Dillard University of New Orleans, LA in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science degree and started a Master of Physical Therapy (P.T.) program later that same year in August at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, TX. Prior to applying to PT school, Jones recalled an account where her advisor encouraged her to have a “plan b” and pick another career choice because PT school was very difficult to get into. This was extremely discouraging to her, but she leveraged that disappointment by putting more time and energy into being prepared to apply the following fall. Obtaining a 3.89 GPA and very competitive GRE scores, she applied to both the University of Texas Medical Branch and Texas Woman’s University. I’m pretty sure by now it’s not a shocker that she was accepted into both! Naturally, she chose UTMB because it was closer to Lake Charles, Louisiana, her hometown, at the time. UTMB was a complete culture shift to Ashanti. She came from a Historically Black University, to a predominantly white institution. “Everything was different--down to the food I ate.” she said. Regardless, she rose above her adversaries and persevered. Needless to say, she graduated in Decem-
