Authenticity Speaks Volumes for Miyah Campbell

When Miyah Campbell first came to Community College of Philadelphia, she was not sure what she wanted to study or what she wanted to do, but she knew that she wanted to pursue a career path with greater stability and security. At the time, she was working at a hotel and caring for her daughter as a single mother. Now, she has three college degrees, works as a licensed social worker and is pursuing her doctorate in Social Work.

Miyah first considered attending CCP after her graduation from YouthBuild Charter School in Philadelphia. YouthBuild’s mission is to empower out-of-school youths to develop skills and connect them to opportunities by fostering an environment of love, support, and respect for their whole person. Miyah’s graduation ceremony was held on CCP’s campus, which inspired her to look into enrolling.

“I remember my daughter, at the time, was going to a Montessori school,” Miyah said. “And I was looking at the parents in that community, and they were all working professionals. And I was like, ‘Let me see what schools I might like.’”

Miyah enrolled at CCP and began her higher educational journey with general education courses. “I think that CCP was like a boot camp. I think because I made it there, the other schools, to me, were easier,” Miyah said in hindsight. "I think I definitely learned about the resources that are available at the college level.”

With a few CCP courses under her belt, Miyah realized she wanted to major in the helping field after a friend asked her what she was studying at CCP. “I want to do something like the Dixon House,” Miyah told her friend, and they suggested she take some courses in the Behavioral Health and Human Services department.

The Dixon House, a Diversified Community Services property that serves as a nonprofit, multipurpose social service agency, gives families and children the opportunity to be self-sufficient in their neighborhoods. Miyah saw how impactful the Dixon House was in her own neighborhood and was inspired to attain a similar career.

While she currently works at a dialysis clinic with patients who have End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). Miyah eventually aims to help young people. In her doctoral program at Widener University, she is planning to focus her research on social media and its effect on young people, specifically relating to gun violence prevention.

“That’s what I would love to do. To work with youth, or work with some type of organization to develop programming around it. Because if I’m engulfed in that literature and research, I will have the tools to address it,” Miyah said.

Throughout Miyah’s academic journey, faculty, staff and mentors have encouraged her to keep going and to lead with her whole self. She said one of the most important things CCP taught her was how to find and utilize student resources. She did that by asking questions and maintaining authenticity. She reflected on this process, saying that not being afraid to ask questions has contributed to much of her success. Miyah said recognizing her own authenticity and carrying it with her all these years has not only kept her pushing forward, but has helped her connect to those that she serves more effectively.

“I find it so important to show up as who you are, because people could take from that and learn,” she said. Miyah hopes to be able to help others by being her authentic self in the same way many of her professors and mentors at CCP, La Salle and Widener have done for her.