Alumni Spotlight: Tanisha Anderson, RN

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Against The Odds

By Danielle Robinson

Many students enter University High School as a seventh graders and if they’re smart and diligent enough they get to stay here all six years. Alumna Tanisha Anderson, sister of Head Basketball Coach Otis Anderson Jr. was one of those people. Recently I was able to connect with this esteemed alum and learn about her time here at University and beyond.

Ms. Anderson is a RN (registered nurse) for JFK Medical Center in Edison, NJ. This past school year she joined the Newark Public Schools family as a school nurse in addition to working as an Administrative Coordinator at Newark Beth Israel Hospital. Ms. Anderson says she knew what she wanted to do at young age thanks to her grandmother, “I always wanted to be a nurse because I watched my grandmother care for numerous people in her home and I always had a heart for service and people. Especially women and children.”

Ms. Anderson’s road to becoming an RN wasn’t exactly paved with gold. In fact, she almost went a different route altogether. After graduating from University at the top of her class she went on to attend William Paterson University where she initially majored in nursing. After feeling like she was being discriminated against she decided to change her major to public health even though she was doing well academically in all of her nursing classes.

Personally, I can’t imagine having a teacher that isn’t in my corner or doesn’t want to see me succeed academically. Even our guidance counselors here at University are always pushing us towards greatness as I am sure they did when Tanisha was here. But luckily her story doesn’t stop there. She went on graduate from William Paterson with her Bachelors of Science and Community Health and Tanisha even went on to receive her Masters in Public Health from UMDNJ.

Since Ms. Anderson graduated from UHS at the top of her class, she was able to attend William Paterson on a full academic scholarship. So when I asked her if she felt UHS adequately prepared you for college and/or a career, she said the following:

“University absolutely prepared me for college and my career. Even though I was not a well organized student when it came to studying, the skills I learned from the teachers and study groups helped me be successful in college. Especially when I did the accelerated nursing program and received my BSN in 16 months.”

I appreciated her honesty about not being an organized person. That is something I need to work on as well. It’s good to know that you don’t have to have everything figured out when you arrive in college.

Just like Ms. Anderson didn’t have it all figured out either. Even though she graduated with one specialty, she found her way back to her passion. Part of that can be attributed to her affiliation with her sorority. Tanisha Anderson is a proud member Delta Sigma Theta, Incorporated. Tanisha participates in several service projects lending her community health knowledge and skills at the Isaiah House, schools and other organizations within the greater Newark community

Her most personal service affiliation is the work she does with Newark Beth Israel Pediatric Cardiology department. She works closely with the Newark Beth NICU (premature baby ward) Graduate Program. Tanisha’s only child, her son Omari was born prematurely. Mostly all of the service work she does is focused around helping to educate families and the community at large by bringing awareness to children born prematurely and with severe heart conditions like her son. Tanisha had to put everything she learned to the side and trust God and the doctors that had her son in her care. If you were to see Omari today in the stands cheering on the UHS boys basketball team you would never know he had such a rough start to his life. And when Ms. Anderson speaks of her son it makes her smile from the inside out. 

She says forget what she has done, Omari is her “claim to fame” people recognize her as the mom of the cute little boy on the hospital doors at Beth Israel. Through Omari’s story Ms. Anderson was able to raise over $1,000 for the Newark Beth Israel Pediatric Cardiology Department.

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I wanted to close out our interview by asking Ms. Anderson for her fondest memory from her days here at University. Ms. Anderson, like many alumni, said they have several. But when I asked her to narrow it down, she said this:

“My fondest memory of University is participating in chorus with Mrs. Boxley. We had a ball preparing and performing at school, the train station, the post office and other Newark public schools.”

Her advice for us is simple, “never give up.” And after interviewing Ms. Anderson and hearing Omari’s story I can honestly say I won’t be giving up either.