{"686534":{"#nid":"686534","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Turning Tragedy into Growth","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGoing to college was a step Angela Juric never questioned. Poised to graduate high school as salutatorian, she was certain to end up at a top university. However, her family was living on federal aid due to a devastating workplace accident, which presented a major financial challenge to her dreams.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETragedy and Responsibility\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhen Angela was 11, her father, Zdravko, was hit by a front loader while on the job. Describing the traumatic incident, Angela says, \u201cLooking back on it, I didn\u2019t realize the gravity of the situation because I was so young. We were told he tried to get up after being hit, but his coworkers wouldn\u2019t let him. They called the ambulance and took him to Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. That\u0027s when one of his co-workers came to our house and told me and my mom that he had gotten into an accident.\u201d With a crushed pelvis, Zdravko underwent an 11-hour, life-saving surgery after which he was transferred to the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/shepherd.org\/\u0022\u003EShepherd Center\u003C\/a\u003E to recover and learn how to walk again.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs both of her parents are Croatian (previously Yugoslavian) immigrants who do not speak English fluently, Angela had to take on a more mature role in her family, acting as a translator during Zdravko\u2019s recovery. Angela helped translate everything from documents and bills for her mother to the doctors and nurses caring for her father.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDespite the trauma of his accident, Zdravko has regained much of his independence, is back to a \u201cnew normal,\u201d and is aware of the impact his accident has had on Angela\u2019s educational experience.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt\u2019s weird how life works sometimes,\u201d she says. \u0022He came from a foreign country and got this construction job to help support his family, which would end up changing his life with the accident. But eventually, I was able to get this [Kids\u0027 Chance] scholarship and go to college because of it. So, that domino effect, it really does exist.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EKids\u0027 Chance Scholarship\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile researching her financial aid options, Angela discovered Kids\u2019 Chance of Georgia, an organization that provides educational scholarships to the children of Georgia workers who have been seriously or fatally injured on the job. After applying for and receiving a scholarship, she began saving the monthly stipends that high school recipients receive for future college expenses \u2014 a decision that ultimately helped her attend Georgia Tech.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFounded in 1988, Kids\u2019 Chance of Georgia was the first organization of its kind in the nation, and has been a model for Kids\u2019 Chance charities in 49 other states as well as the national organization. Kids\u2019 Chance organizations strive to offer need-based scholarships to the families of seriously injured workers and are supported by occupational safety and health programs like \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/oshainfo.gatech.edu\/safety-and-health-training-events\/safety-and-health-training-courses\/\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech OSHA Training Institute Education Center\u003C\/a\u003E, which has contributed a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/pe.gatech.edu\/certificates#occupational-safety-and-health\u0022\u003Efull program certificate\u003C\/a\u003E to the Kids\u0027 Chance of Georgia silent auction for years.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESince its inception, the program has provided over 700 scholarships, raised almost $7 million, and established memorial scholarships and endowment funds for those in need. In the 2024-2025 academic year, Kids\u2019 Chance of Georgia awarded approximately $125,000 in scholarship funding across 62 scholarships \u2014 including the one Angela receives.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBecoming the Resource They Needed\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENow, as a first-generation college student, Angela is a junior at Georgia Tech. In addition to other financial aid she receives, the Kids\u2019 Chance scholarship helped her make this possible. \u201cIt\u2019s been very helpful being able to afford to live on campus; it\u0027s such a fun experience. I don\u0027t think I would have the same college experience without it because I\u0027ve been able to meet so many great people and be surrounded by excellence in Atlanta and Georgia Tech,\u201d she raves.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMajoring in \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003Ebiology\u003C\/a\u003E with a minor in Spanish, Angela hopes to become a physician\u0027s assistant or an anesthesiologist assistant and is currently working as a nurse assistant. In middle school, Angela discovered she had an aptitude for learning Spanish and attributes this to the fact that she already speaks Croatian: \u201cWhen you know more than one language, it\u2019s easier to learn another.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDuring the summer of 2025, she attended a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/events\/new-study-abroad-program-costa-rica-summer-2025\u0022\u003Estudy abroad trip\u003C\/a\u003E to Costa Rica, where she studied epigenetics, cancer biotechnology, and bioethics. Tying her major and minor together, Angela strives to be fluent in Spanish as a healthcare professional, knowing that patients feel more relaxed when they can speak their native language.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI\u0027ve seen firsthand how hard it can be being sick, going to the hospital, and not knowing the language,\u201d she says. \u201cI want to become a medical professional who can communicate with patients in their native language because it\u0027s scary not knowing what\u0027s happening to you or what doctors or nurses are saying. I would love to be a kind of beacon of peace for those patients.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHer Father\u0027s Pride\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAngela has, without a doubt, made her father proud, taking a life-altering tragedy and all of its lessons and turning it\u003Cstrong\u003E \u003C\/strong\u003Einto something positive.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cMy father comes from an Eastern European country. He lived a very rural village life, and didn\u0027t get a college education in his country. I\u0027ve told him about the scholarship, and he thinks it\u0027s great,\u0022 she says. \u0022I think he\u0027s very proud of where I am, that I\u0027m able to go to school, that I\u0027m able to navigate it, and be able to have this experience.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAngela\u0027s journey \u2014 her determination and strength \u2014 embodies the Georgia Tech spirit. As she continues her education with support from Kids\u0027 Chance, she is turning her family\u0027s story into an example of resilience, compassion, and success.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"How a workplace injury shaped a Georgia Tech student\u0027s life mission."}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAngela Juric\u2019s childhood changed after her father\u0027s workplace accident. Through resilience and a Kids\u2019 Chance scholarship, she\u0027s now a third-year biology major pursuing a career in healthcare.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Angela Juric\u2019s childhood changed after her father\u0027s workplace accident. Through resilience and a Kids\u2019 Chance scholarship, she\u0027s now a third-year biology major pursuing a career in healthcare."}],"uid":"36583","created_gmt":"2025-11-19 16:28:38","changed_gmt":"2025-11-19 17:30:29","author":"lvidal7","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2025-11-14T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2025-11-14T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"678668":{"id":"678668","type":"image","title":"Angela Juric with Georgia Tech mascot Buzz","body":null,"created":"1763569893","gmt_created":"2025-11-19 16:31:33","changed":"1763569893","gmt_changed":"2025-11-19 16:31:33","alt":"Angela Juric with Georgia Tech mascot Buzz","file":{"fid":"262726","name":"IMG_6814cropped.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/11\/19\/IMG_6814cropped.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/11\/19\/IMG_6814cropped.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":4446800,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/11\/19\/IMG_6814cropped.jpg?itok=CX_gtilx"}}},"media_ids":["678668"],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"1275","name":"School of Biological Sciences"}],"categories":[{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"192249","name":"cos-community"},{"id":"166882","name":"School of Biological Sciences"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWriter: Kat Bell, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/pe.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech Professional Education\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["kat.bell@pe.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}