As a young student growing up in Jamaica, West Indies, Destini Buchanan’s teachers knew there was something special about her.
“I’ve always been very shy,” she said. “But in high school, I felt that a lot of the staff and faculty saw something in me and always pushed me toward leadership roles and nominated me for positions and awards. So that’s how I originally got started in leadership.”
Now a Farmingdale State College (FSC) bioscience major and business management minor, Buchanan is also pursuing a Certification in Cannabis Production and Management. She stands out in FSC’s campus community for her student advocacy and commitment to inclusion. She served as FSC Student Government Association vice president for two years before becoming president for the 2023-2024 term. Moreover, she serves as FSC unit secretary for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and vice president of FSC’s Afro-Caribbean Club.
The recognitions keep coming. Buchanan has received two FSC Campus Life Awards for Student Government Leadership, a 2023 FSC President’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Student Leadership Award, a 2024 Student Achievement Award from New York State Senator Monica Martinez, and most recently a 2024 Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence—the State University of New York’s (SUNY) highest student honor.
“Destini is an impressive young woman with a noticeable intellectual prowess,” said Kevin Jordan, EdD, FSC vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusive excellence and chief diversity officer. “She is focused and has a determination that is sustained by her excellent self-management skills. She is a balanced listener and has the ability to build relationships and community. Excellence is not a static attribute, but is dynamic—ergo, always in the process of achievement. Destini consistently models this philosophy. I have no doubt about her success.”
Professionally, Buchanan has held several healthcare positions and currently works at a local urgent care center as an advanced clinical associate, “which mixes medical assistant and scribing,” she said. Buchanan also volunteers weekly as a crisis hotline counselor. After college, she plans to pursue a career as a physician with a focus on overcoming inconsistencies in care for underrepresented populations.
“My first experience with healthcare would definitely be with my grandmother’s health battles, which started when we were in Jamaica,” said Buchanan, who moved to New York in 2019. “That’s where it all started. I’ve been able to meet a lot of healthcare professionals and to just see the care. And one pivotal experience for me was meeting an African American anesthesiologist. She was very empowering.
“From those experiences I feel like being pre-med and doing the task of clinicals and working in the healthcare field has solidified my choice to be a physician,” she said.
For Buchanan, caring for others is extremely rewarding and she often gets positive feedback from her clients and patients. “A lot of times they are like, ‘Thank you for just giving me a voice or giving me a space to actually speak because oftentimes I feel marginalized.’ So, it’s very, very self-fulfilling for me,” she said.
Buchanan credits her family and upbringing with instilling her industriousness and determination. “We were hardworking people,” she said. “If we needed it, we would have it through hard work. I believe a lot of my values and beliefs and how I see things and how I go about life is based on growing up in Jamaica.”
She is thankful to FSC for helping pave the way for her future success.
“I love Farmingdale,” she said. “I’m tearing up right now. I always tell people I love Farmingdale so much. The opportunities here—especially coming from a place where I didn’t really have many opportunities. Farmingdale has done so much for me. So, I’m very happy. And I’m very grateful.”
