On Thursday, October 1, Goodwin College hosted a blood drive and bone marrow donor screening as a tribute to one of its own community members. Goodwin psychology instructor Kristin “Nicole” Segovia was diagnosed with a form of leukemia, and without a bone marrow transplant her survival rate was estimated to be less than a year.
Nicole is part Syrian and part Spaniard, which made the search for a donor more difficult, but she and her husband Liam are overjoyed to announce that a perfect match donor was recently found in Brazil.
Nicole and Liam were impressed and humbled by the outpouring of support from the Goodwin community and beyond.
“The support of Goodwin College has been phenomenal,” Liam expressed. “Everyone rallied around her and made a lot of good things happen.”
Nicole’s good friend and Goodwin’s Curriculum Director for Psychology & Sociology, Tammy Webb, played a large part in making this event happen.
“Generally, about 20 new donors are swabbed at bone marrow drives, but at Goodwin we had 58,” she stated. “The fact that we had that many people in such a short period of time was nothing short of amazing.”
Dan Noonan, Vice President for Enrollment, Marketing, and Communications, immediately jumped on board when he heard of Nicole’s story.
“Dan saw the need and that kind of leadership is amazing,” said Cliff Thermer Assistant Vice President for Strategy and Business Development. “We would do this for any member of the Goodwin family.”
Nicole is very eager to begin the treatment process. The marrow transplant is set to take place on October 23. The road to recovery won’t be easy, but the Goodwin community is wishing her well.
Goodwin University is a nonprofit institution of higher education and is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE), formerly known as the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). Goodwin University was founded in 1999, with the goal of serving a diverse student population with career-focused degree programs that lead to strong employment outcomes.