Amelia Toye, RN, a Graduate Entry Pathway to PhD student in the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing, is the newly elected UMass Chan Medical School student trustee on the UMass Board of Trustees for the 2023-2024 academic year. She is the first UMass Chan nursing student to be elected a student trustee.
“Serving the community is really something that I have always wanted to do and always love to do,” Toye said.
Toye already has student leadership experience on campus. For the past two years, she has served as a member of the UMass Chan Student Government Alliance in her role as secretary and co-president of the Tan Chingfen Graduate Student of Nursing Organization, or GSNO.
“Being a leader is kind of like a double-edge sword. It’s very rewarding, but it can also be very challenging at times,” Toye said. “I feel like I’m always drawn to leadership and service positions.”
Toye was born and raised in Weymouth and graduated from Weymouth High School. She received her bachelor’s degree in biology and psychology from Quinnipiac University. She and her three siblings are first-generation college graduates.
“My parents were very determined to help us succeed and do what they weren’t able to do. They were eager for us to strive to do a little better,” Toye said. Her father is a retired electrician, and her mother works as a paraprofessional and behavioral technician for children with cognitive disabilities and autism.
After completing her PhD, Toye hopes to work in higher education.
“I would like to be a faculty member, especially if I do have interest in continuing with research after graduation. I know affiliation with an institution enhances my options as well,” Toye said. “It’s funny looking back at growing up, I used to always want to be a teacher. Now that I’m in higher education and I see the impact that faculty have on their students, I see that’s the kind of teacher I want to be.”
Toye was elected to the UMass Board of Trustees by a majority vote of her peers. She will replace the current student representative, Bethany Berry, chair of the Student Government Alliance and an MD/PhD student at UMass Chan.
Toye will be sworn in as a board member on July 1. She is one of five UMass student board members, each representing one of the UMass campuses.
