STUDENT CLOSE-UP

Family Tradition

By Ashlee Erwin

Following in his brother’s footsteps was the last thing Brandon Tilghman, BS ’04, wanted to do. Older brother Jarron, BS ’03, had made the short trip from their hometown of St. Charles, Mo., to the University of Missouri-Columbia, but Brandon wanted a school all his own. After looking at Mizzou more closely, however, Brandon changed his mind.

“I didn’t realize the University was so big,” Brandon said. “I saw my brother when I wanted to, but I started doing my own thing. What surprised me the most was the independence I found at Mizzou.”

Two years later Jasmine Tilghman, the third sibling in the Tilghman family, also found herself facing decisions about college.

“My brothers had a big influence on my decision,” Jasmine said. “They are the first in my family to go to college, so all I had were Mizzou clothes. Going to Mizzou was always in the back of my mind.”

Now a sophomore, Jasmine decided to carry on the Tilghman family tradition at MU for many of the same reasons Brandon did: strong scholarship opportunities and the chance to get involved.

Brandon was a pre-med/chemistry major who immediately became involved with the Exposure to Research for Science Students (EXPRESS) Program, which offers freshmen and sophomore students the opportunity to work with faculty mentors in research projects. Brandon worked with George Kracke in the anesthesiology department at the MU School of Medicine, providing him with practical lab experience that will help him achieve his dream of becoming a physician.

Brandon also spent the summer of 2002 in the Louis Stokes Missouri Alliance for Minority Participation Research Program (Now EMERGE) . There he worked with Silvia Jurisson in the chemistry department doing research using radioactive metals to fight cancer. With the money he earned through this research, Brandon participated in an Eisenhower Scholars Program mission trip to study the AIDS epidemic in South Africa.

Jasmine also came to Mizzou as a pre-med major and became involved with the EXPRESS program right from the start. However, just before volunteering at the psychology lab with Anna Bardone-Cone, Jasmine decided that the mind fascinated her more than the body. Now a psychology major, she is keeping a diverse schedule, with such courses as women’s self-defense, medical terminology and Spanish, to keep her opportunities open.

“I love to learn new things because I am a believer that knowledge is power,” Jasmine said.

Jasmine also stays active as a member of the Legion of Black Collegians and the NAACP, a volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House and a participant in the MAP program, which recognizes diversity scholarship recipients and provides them with mentorship opportunities. Getting involved was something Jasmine learned from Brandon, who was active in the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. (Zeta Alpha Chapter) and the McNair Scholars Program. Jasmine, too, is hoping to become a McNair Scholar, which would entitle her to extra research opportunities and graduate study preparation.

The extra effort has paid off for Brandon, who is now in a biomedical engineering graduate program at Polytechnic University in Brooklyn, N.Y., that will prepare him for medical school. Jarron is in a similar program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and Jasmine has plans to apply to psychology graduate programs in Florida. Their youngest sibling, Brittany, decided to attend a design school in Chicago, but remains close to her three Tiger siblings.

The Tilghmans credit all of their successes to their mother, Jocelyn Tilghman, a single parent who raised her children to depend upon each other and their faith. The family still sings together in their church gospel choir during breaks and holidays, and while the physical distance among the siblings has grown, the emotional bond is just as strong as ever.

“If we went anywhere, we’d still be helping each other out,” Brandon said. “We just all happened to start out at Mizzou.”

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Last Update: March 12, 2007