Sierra Meche-Higgins said she has never lost her small town roots, but she is forging her own path in Lake Charles by teaching a future generation of nurses.

Meche-Higgins is in her third year as an assistant professor at McNeese State University’s undergraduate nursing program and is faculty of the month for March. She said she wants to prepare nursing students while providing an encouraging learning environment.

“One of my philosophies is don’t forget where you came from,” she said. “I know what it’s like to have pressure during nursing school. If you don’t have support from faculty, you’re not going to make it. I want students to feel confident and not scared to do anything.”

Meche-Higgins was born and raised in Sunset, La., a small town in between Lafayette and Opelousas. Her father, Joseph Meche, was the town’s mayor pro-tem for several years.

“We kind of lived and breathed everything small town,” she said. “I think we had one stop light.”

Meche-Higgins attended school at the Academy of Sacred Heart in nearby Grand Coteau, an all-girl school. After graduating, she moved to New Orleans in 2005 to attend Xavier University. A mere two weeks after moving there, Hurricane Katrina’s devastating landfall left the university underwater.

Meche-Higgins returned home and chose to attend the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She graduated in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology, but she returned to school shortly afterward to study nursing. She obtained an associate’s degree from Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University in Baton Rouge, then returned to ULL to get her bachelor’s degree in nursing.

After college, Meche-Higgins took a job as a neuro nurse at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center in Lafayette. She and her husband, Donald, married in 2014, and the two moved to Lake Charles. Donald is a Lake Charles native.

Meche-HIggins said she and Donald met when they were both in high school through the Knights of Peter Claver, a Catholic organization. The two dated throughout college, and Donald proposed in 2012. A 2013 American Press article highlighted Donald’s proposal, which occurred at the top of Rockefeller Center in New York City.

“The article is actually framed at our house,” she said.

After Donald finished medical school, the two moved to Lake Charles. Donald is now a family doctor with Lake Charles Memorial Medical Group.

While in Lake Charles, Meche-Higgins spent several years working at Moss Memorial Health Clinic. In 2018, she decided to pursue a master’s degree in nursing education at McNeese State University.

Meche-Higgins said there is a lack of African-American nurses in the region. As an assistant professor, she wants to encourage fellow black nursing students and continue fostering diversity in the profession.

“When you don’t see your race, it’s hard to get the resources we need,” she said. “I can pride myself on students feeling like I can understand where they are coming from. Ten years ago, it wasn’t like that. Now, diversity is on the front page.”

Having immersed herself in the Lafayette scene years earlier, Meche-Higgins said adjusting to life in Lake Charles was challenging initially. She said that Donald encouraged her to get involved with local organizations. She is part of the Louisiana Nurses Association Lake Charles District, the Junior League of Lake Charles and the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.

“At first, I didn’t know what Lake Charles had to offer,” she said. “Since then, I was able to connect with local people and understand what the city is. It’s very diverse, and you have different parts of town that support each other.”

Meche-Higgins said their home was relatively unscathed by Hurricane Laura’s landfall in August 2020. Still, she, Donald, and their two children, 5-year-old Noah, and 1-year-old Maya, spent four months in Sunset while power was being restored. Donald continued to meet with patients virtually, while she commuted regularly to check in with her students.

Maya was born in April 2020, right at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was supposed to arrive in June and spent 13 days in the newborn intensive care unit. Maya’s first trip away from home was to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Laura, Meche-Higgins said.

Despite the destruction left behind by Hurricanes Laura and Delta, Meche-Higgins said she has seen how the region chose to pick itself up and rebuild.

“Even though we went through so much, we’re surviving,” she said. “I know the hurricanes put a damper on the city’s growth, but we’ve shown that we’re very strong and resilient.”