Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama

PhD Student at the University of Connecticut | Research, Grant, and Sustainability Lead @projectpinkblue | Cancer Control Advocate| Views=mine #ChokeCancer

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

A little life update
In August, I began my PhD in Human Development & Family Sciences (HDFS) at the University of Connecticut (UConn). UConn is an R1 university, a designation granted by the Carnegie Foundation and held by only about 3% of U.S. universities, 1/5

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

PS: My PhD is in Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Connecticut. Cancer survivorship is my research focus within that program.
#CTFRide #hoperideswithu
4/4

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

Yesterday I had the privilege of being featured on NBC Connecticut sharing why I am riding 25 miles this September in the 2026 Closer to Free Ride to raise funds for @Smilow Cancer Hospital and Yale Cancer Center in Connecticut.
1/4

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

I have also lost people I love to this disease.
Watch the full story here:
https://t.co/4EQLkd6trW
If you can spare even $10 or $20, it genuinely adds up. And if donating is not possible right now, simply sharing this post would mean so much.
https://t.co/IxXi73fZ8N
3/4

[CaPTC @CaPTC7]

🌍 CaPTC Celebrates Professor Popoola: A Landmark Achievement in Global Cancer Research 🏆

The #CaPTC proudly celebrates Professor Popoola on the official registration of the **iCCaRE Nigeria Clinical Trial** on *https://t.co/pr8FcgFSPm* (NCT07598032)—a major step for forward

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

Deeply grateful to Prof. Tania B. Huedo-Medina, Prof. Tricia Leahey, Prof. Aviana Rosen, Ane Yllera, Eider Egaña, and the full Meta-ONKO team for their mentorship and trust this semester. This is just the beginning. 5/5

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

This semester, I had the privilege of joining the Cancer & Well-Being Project, an international research collaboration between the @UConn and the University of the Basque Country, Spain, through the course, AH 6181 under the guidance of my advisor Keith Bellizzi. 1/5

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

A few things I am taking from this experience:
→ Screening requires real scientific judgment
→ Systematic review is team science
→ Scale changes how you see a field
4/5

[Nice News @nicenewshq]

What does it mean to be resilient? The trait is highly valued but largely misunderstood, according to Keith M. Bellizzi, who's studied resilience for over two decades. He shares his definition of the term and five practices for building it below.
https://t.co/sY1PWHjS4I

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

Imposter syndrome is a sign that you are standing in a place you once only dreamed of.
I was standing in that place.
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[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

#TBT
Five days ago, April 18th, I presented at UConn's first-ever First Gen Summit. My session was titled "The Weight I Carry: Identity, Belonging, and the Real Work of Thriving in Graduate School." My first public talk outside Nigeria.
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[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

I closed with something I believe: thriving is not what happens after the struggle ends. It happens inside of it.
I will leave you with the words of my advisor Dr. Keith Bellizzi from his book Falling Forward.
4/5

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

There are programs, people, and resources built specifically for you. Start here: https://t.co/XNbGHI4ckE
#FirstGen Forward #UConn #HigherEducation 7/7

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

this. Just say yes and go ahead and see what happens."
And Leo Lachut, who has worked at University of Connecticut for nearly 30 years and has built over 30 first gen programs across campus, shared five rules for succeeding at university as a first gen student. 1) Ask early. 5/7

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

2)Relationships matter. 3) You do not have to do it alone. 4) Opportunities do not come to you, you step into them. 5) You belong - confidence comes after action. Not before it.
If you are a first gen student at University of Connecticut, you are not alone. 6/7

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

We also heard from Pavan Bolla, a first gen UConn graduate now working as an AI agent specialist. He closed his session with this on the screen, "One opportunity can change everything." Then he said, "Every opportunity that came to me, I was not ready for any of them, even 4/7

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

"Being first gen is not a deficit. It is a strength." — Dr. Fany DeJesús Hannon, Ed.D.

University of Connecticut has been a First Gen Forward institution since 2020, recognized for its work supporting first gen student recruitment, retention, and graduation. 1/7

[Sampson Chinonso Ipiankama @ipiankama]

myself." Then she told us about arriving in the United States not speaking English, sitting in a classroom at Miami Dade Community College, and eventually earning a full ride to Smith College. Not despite being first gen. Because of everything being first gen built in her. 3/7