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Sixela Caballero G’26, a first-year doctor of physical therapy student, was awarded the Crest scholarship this week. The $14,000 scholarship, renewable for two years, is awarded to outstanding DPT students from underrepresented racial or ethnic backgrounds entering their first or second year of graduate school.

Caballero is a first-generation college student with a long history of leadership and service. Still in her first-year of ���ϲ�����’s DPT program, she is on the leadership team for the Health Outreach Program of ���ϲ����� (H.O.P.E.) Clinic, a physical therapy clinic managed and operated by ���ϲ����� DPT students that offers free services to those uninsured or under-insured in Alamance County and surrounding areas. Caballero also serves as a H.O.P.E. Clinic liaison to the , a Global Learning Ambassador, and a representative on the School of Health Sciences Diversity Committee where she assists in the design and implementation of monthly events open to all programs within the School of Health Sciences.

Caballero, one of ten DPT students in the US to receive the scholarship this year, says she aspires to be “a physical therapist who will provide compassionate and culturally sensitive healthcare.” Professor of physical therapy education Janet Cope, who nominated Caballero for the award, would undoubtedly say she is well on her way to achieving that goal. In her nomination letter, Cope commented on Caballero’s academic maturity and her quiet commitment to supporting her peers, inside the classroom and out.

“She’s a delightful human!” Cope remarked, in response to the good news.

Rizing Tide’s mission is to empower a new generation of BIPOC leaders in the physical therapy profession by providing scholarships to help address the costs of higher education and offering mentorship and leadership skill training to the scholars. Fiorella Barreda, in ���ϲ�����’s DPT class of 2024, was also recognized with the Rizing Tide Crest Scholarship in 2022.