Gia Hodges, Courageous Student-Athlete
Upon arriving on University of Tennessee (UT) campus, Gia Hodges made her presence known through her academics and her incredible positive attitude that was contagious among her teammates. But Hodges' path to get to Tennessee was not easy.
Gia's family has been fractured in various ways: divorce, violence, emotional torment, addiction and neurological disease. Hodges' biological father struggles with addiction, while her adoptive father lives with an extremely rare, neuromuscular disease. The impacts of her adoptive fathers' diseases are both physical and emotional. Since her adoptive father was diagnosed, she instantly took on a role in life that most children would never have to even consider -- she became a caretaker. Soon, that caretaker role extended to her biological father who was placed into a medically induced coma in Knoxville. She was now the power of attorney to both of her fathers.
Despite these unimaginable challenges and responsibilities, Hodges has excelled in the classroom, majoring in neuroscience and psychology. Her plan after graduation is medical school, getting her one step closer to becoming a doctor.
Gia's family has been fractured in various ways: divorce, violence, emotional torment, addiction and neurological disease. Hodges' biological father struggles with addiction, while her adoptive father lives with an extremely rare, neuromuscular disease. The impacts of her adoptive fathers' diseases are both physical and emotional. Since her adoptive father was diagnosed, she instantly took on a role in life that most children would never have to even consider -- she became a caretaker. Soon, that caretaker role extended to her biological father who was placed into a medically induced coma in Knoxville. She was now the power of attorney to both of her fathers.
Despite these unimaginable challenges and responsibilities, Hodges has excelled in the classroom, majoring in neuroscience and psychology. Her plan after graduation is medical school, getting her one step closer to becoming a doctor.