Courtlin Arrington’s legacy lives on through students’ interested in medical field

BIRMINGHAM, AL (WBRC) - Dr. Kre Johnson never met Courtlin Arrington, but she felt connected to the 17 year old Huffman High School senior.

Their connection is through heartbreak. Arrington was killed one year ago, March, 7 2018, at Huffman High School. The school was not too far from Johnson’s former practice.

"I had a lot of compassion, a lot of sadness and I felt devastated for Courtlin’s family and classmates,” said Dr. Johnson.

That pain was channeled into something positive.

"Here she is, a young, black female, thriving and interested in becoming a nurse in the medical field. For me, that really hit home for me. She wanted to be a nurse, other kids in her class were striving to do the exact same thing. What can I do to help those other young girls to kind of encourage them and let them know, that yes this happen, but don’t give up, keep going keep,” said Dr. Johnson.

That’s when the Courtlin Arrington Scholarship was created.

Now in its second year, nine girls have applied. The scholarship is for female high school senior who are interested in any sector of the medical field. The students must be enrolled in a Birmingham City School.

"A lot of the girls are in Huffman’s Courtlin Arrington nursing program looking to continue their pursuit of becoming nurses and doctors and it just made me really happy that out of something so dark and something so sad we can continue to make good strides,” said Dr. Johnson.

“We can hook these girls up with a great mentors in the medical field so that we can ensure that they reach their goals as quickly as they can,” she continued.

Arrington couldn’t reach her life’s goal, but through her life other young girls will.

“Hopefully she won’t always be remembered as Courtlin and this is what happened to her at Huffman, but Courtlin was an awesome scholar,” she said. "She was smart, she was warm, she was loving, and she had a heart for compassion and caring for people and that’s why we want Courtlin’s name to live on.“

G.W. Carver High School graduate Jaylin Givens was the first recipient. She’s at Talladega College studying to become a physical therapist. This year’s recipient will be announced in April. The scholarship is worth $1,000. If you want to donate to the scholarship fund, click HERE .

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