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Christina Westbrook: She overcame traumatic accident to help others

November 8, 2022

Christina is the CEO and founder of Fontenelle Art LLC.

In 2011, Christina Westbrook was hit by a car during her first semester as a transfer student at Illinois State University. Christina missed the entire spring semester and felt mentally, emotionally, and physically lost. Not only was she still adjusting to a new environment, but she was also navigating college as a first-generation student.

While trying to find her educational and career path, she left her biochemistry major and pursued the arts. She remembered hearing about TRIO Student Support Services as a resource for first-generation students and decided to seek help from a TRIO advisor. She was overwhelmed by her traumatic accident and had to figure out college independently. However, the TRIO staff met with her each week to help her plan a career path, hold her accountable with art class projects, and teach her to study efficiently.

Christina believes that if it weren’t for TRIO, she would not be a psychotherapist specializing in Art & Dance/Movement Therapy and providing her curriculum, Aligning Your Inner Student’s Strength, to TRIO and GEAR UP programs and schools across the nation. She has vowed to pour back into the TRIO community as much as possible.