Xavierite Tasia Clark, a senior biology premed major, is taking a stance and making an impact in innovative technology. Congratulations are in order to Clark, who placed third in the statewide BizTech Challenge on November 25, 2022. As a BizTech finalist, Clark pitched All for Me, an app she’s developing to meet the needs of African American, Latina and Asian American women regarding mental health and self-care.
In preparation for the competition, Clark, who also juggles a double minor in entrepreneurship and chemistry, spoke with women and healthcare professionals to acquire a good understanding of the needs of minority women. She then developed her business model and rehearsed her pitch in preparation for the competition.
“I entered the competition because I thought it could be fun and something to do for my entrepreneurship class. I was surprised to learn that I advanced in the competition, becoming a finalist,” said Clark. She continued, “It just goes to show that sometimes you just have to be in it to win it!”
The BizTech Challenge is an annual pitch competition hosted by NexusLA and is open to HBCU students in Louisiana. Clark was composed of a team with just herself while competing against teams of three to five people. She competed against seven teams and won third place.
Clark’s passion for mental health and eloquence in pushing her product-convinced the judges to take an interest in her app.
“I see this app being a safe space that can travel with you no matter where you are. This app was designed to allow you to take a moment to heal and sit with your emotions no matter where you are.” stated Clark.
The importance of mental health has begun to be recognized, in part due to the work of people like Clark. Approximately 26% of Americans ages 18 and older, or about one in four adults, suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder each year. According to research, women are twice as likely to experience depression than men. In the Black community, further research suggests that emerging adults aged 18-25 experience higher rates of mental health problems, but lower rates of mental health service utilization as compared to white adults of the same age and older Black adults. As shared by the Chair and Medical Director of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Sibley Memorial Hospital, Dr. Erica Richards, Ph.D. and M.D., women of color too often try to “muscle” their way through anxiety and depression all by themselves. Considering that research also reveals that the adult Black community is 20% more likely to experience mental health problems, those like Clark who seek to remove the stigma in the community are invaluable in the path to a better, more equitable future. For Clark, the Biztech competition gave her an opportunity to fight against that stigma. As shared by the Chair and Medical Director of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Sibley Memorial Hospital, Dr. Erica Richards, Ph.D. and M.D., women of color too often try to “muscle” their way through anxiety and depression all by themselves. Considering that research also reveals that the adult Black community is 20% more likely to experience mental health problems, those like Clark who seek to remove the stigma in the community are invaluable in the path to a better, more equitable future. For Clark, the Biztech competition was an opportunity to fight against that stigma.
“The program was great. I learned and experienced a lot. There were a lot of hands-on experiences that I really enjoyed for better or worse,” stated Clark. “But beyond that, it was a great experience. Our mentors were available when needed and always gave hands on experience!” Clark is in the process of developing the app to be usable by Xavier Students and by individuals across the nation. The application will be available on every app platform soon; Tashia Clark is beyond excited to share her dream with her Xavier Family
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