Our Students
Your midwifery team at Tempe Birth Center believes in and supports the apprenticeship model for training future midwives. We believe that midwifery is an ancient art and “calling,” not just another professional career choice. Classroom learning with intermittent clinical experience would not equip a student properly for relating to clients with individual and unique needs. Apprenticeship is the absolute best model for teaching future midwives continuity of care for clients. Students see clients through birth and postpartum care from the beginning of their pregnancies. They learn to care about the individual, recognizing first-hand that what might be the “right” answer for one woman may not be for another.
We are very careful and selective about the students we choose to participate in our apprenticeship program. It is vital to us that our students share our values and are compatible with our personalities. For this reason, we hope that if you have hired us, you also will like our apprentices. Even though we are careful, we recognize that not every client will always be comfortable with every student, which is why we want you to know that you always come first. We encourage you to fill out occasional student evaluation forms, which help the student and our midwifery team know how they are doing and if there are aspects of their skills and/or training that need improvement.
Students are always supervised and only allowed to perform midwifery skills they have been taught. We also only allow the students to interact with clients who are comfortable with them. If at any time you do not feel comfortable with our students, please let us know. It is very important that your needs are met first and that you feel at ease with our entire staff.
Ariella Chung, Apprentice
Hey, Hey! My name is Ariella Chung first generation of my family proudly wearing the Guyana flag. My cultural and family traditions run deep in my passion for birth work. Coming from a background in early childhood education specializing in infants through 4 years of age, with special needs, I discovered the options for obstetric care. Coming from a family who grew our food in our backyard and a mother who raised me on alternative medicine, the mentioning of a midwife and out-of-hospital births at age 14 really started the snowball effect. By year 18, my start in birth work as a doula flourished. I made it my role to ensure voices were heard, empowered, and physically supported. My profession in birth work was not only a passion, but framework, and a vital part of my lineage starting with my great grandmother, and grandmother in island midwifery work. I have been intentional with walking towards my calling into birth work, and I continue to love serving right alongside families committed for the whole ride. I’m a homemaker of all things vegan, sweet, and nourishing while enjoying a healthy amount of dirt out with horses and gardening!
Mary Holley, Apprentice
Hello All! My name is Mary Holley, and I’m from Milwaukee, WI. I am a mother, a divine woman, and a sacred space holder for birth. Since childhood, birth work has been something that I’ve always been drawn to. I vividly remember being an adolescent and being drawn to pregnancy, often spending time caring for babies in my mother’s daycare. Later, I became an early childhood educator myself working with infants, toddlers, and children with differing abilities. I’m someone who is very intuitive and has a natural gift to nurture. My gifts have created a very special connection to the other side, and I’m often able to see babies appear in people’s energy before they’re conceived. With my own child, I first felt her presence before ever becoming pregnant.
In 2018, after giving birth, I officially began my journey into birth work as a doula. I’ve been working as a full spectrum (preconception, pregnancy, birth, postpartum, abortion/loss) doula supporting pregnant women since 2020. I started working within my community in Milwaukee, WI, and I very recently relocated to Arizona. Currently, as a student midwife, I am eager to learn and very inspired about what I do. I view birth as something that is instinctual with hopes to start a tradition of midwifery within my lineage and continue the legacy in my community. In my practice, I’d like to have a positive impact on the way that people birth (birth is life) and I am so excited to be at Tempe Birth Center!
Hanifah Muhammad, Apprentice
Greetings Family, I am Hanifah! I am a daughter, sister, mother, wife&widow, auntie, doctor, herbalist, acupuncturist, educator, community advocate and student midwife. I am originally from New Jersey, but moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 2005 to pursue an education in Naturopathic Medicine, and begin my journey to becoming a doctor, midwife and community healer. And oooooo weeeeee has it been a whopper of a journey.
I am a “Community Baby” - an only child of my mother, brought up by a circle of elder women and men, who colored my character with a love of cooking, gardening, building/ construction, ALL types of music, art, knitting, sewing, card playing and traveling, as well as spirituality, self-sufficiency, resiliency, community responsibility and hardwork. Yep, I know that’s a lot, but it has made me a beautiful mosaic of a woman.
My passion for birth work began when I was a young girl, in the images of old female slaves, “the mammy’s” and “big mamas”. These women, who were always called on when the slave women or “Massa’s” wives were in labor, because they carried the knowledge, skill, strength and power to ensure the safe passage of a new life and new momma into loving space. These women were the holders of light and life in a very unsafe and hostile environment. Yet these women still carried the knowledge of foods and herbs, sang songs and stirred large pots of stew and special tea, or sat humming a prayer and knitting a stitch as they sat patiently awaiting the laboring mother, encouraging her and comforting her like known other had been able. These women, were my first archetypes of a midwife. By age of 6 or 7, I knew that I wanted to be a doctor who delivered babies.
I pursued degrees in Psychology and Public Health, prior to pursuing an education in Naturopathic medicine and Chinese medicine. And in between it all I got married, had babies, started a business and infused myself into community advocacy work centered around health disparities, reproductive justice, food equity, mental health wellness, and homelessness. I also travelled to parts of Africa and Haiti, where somehow I was always put with the midwives and maribous (traditional spiritual healers) to assist, learn and experience. I can tell you delivering babies by candlelight sheds a beautiful light on the situation.
I come with much learned and lived experience in the processes of birth, life and death, but also in the processes of healing, strength and joy.
My role in birth work, in the most mundane of senses, is to be a witness and assistant to catch the baby. But in the most magical of senses, my role is to take a journey with families, using my hands, my head, my heart and my spirit to create and ensure a safe space for moms, dads and families, where they can birth their new life into safety and love, on their own terms. Simply put, my role is to ensure that the new lives that come into this world, and the families that are created, are welcomed and held with love, respect, honor and majesty. It is an honored place to sit...right at the feet of our great mothers, waiting patiently at the door to life on this earth with a smile and good greeting for the new soul coming to join us. I was raised to believe that every child is an answer to a prayer. I am here to make sure those prayers are born into existence with gentle, loving care and gratitude.
In my free time, between doctor-mom’ing and supporting birthing families, I enjoy singing, dancing, poetry, photography, and all forms of hands on art. I also love cooking & eating great foods, enjoying great movies, traveling to new places, spending time in nature...park, mountain, lake, backyard (whatever you got, I love it), sewing, knitting or reading. And most of all, I love gathering with friends and family, laughing and sharing time.
My passion has always been to be an assistant to God in his works of healing and supporting life, light and love, through all of it’s cycles. I look forward to joining you and supporting you through this beautiful journey! Let’s go! Peace and Blessings.
Shakari Lockett, Apprentice
Greetings! I am Shakari Lockett, a dedicated mother of six and proud grandmother of two, celebrating 17 years of blissful marriage. Having served eight honorable years in the United States Navy, I transitioned from military service to embark on a fulfilling journey in midwifery, driven by my innate passion for nurturing, supporting, and giving back.
Midwifery, to me, is a profound commitment to nurturing, supporting, educating, and listening to the unique needs of each individual. My journey into birth work began organically through my role as a supportive friend and family member during pregnancies, childbirth, and postpartum periods. The discovery of the doula profession was a revelation, confirming my calling to make a difference in the lives of expecting families.
With four years of dedicated service as a passionate Doula, I have established a safe haven for low-income, teen, and military families, offering unwavering support and a compassionate listening ear. In 2019, I initiated the Jacksonville chapter of the Military Birth Resources Network, curating valuable resources for military families in one accessible space. As the Chapter President, I organized numerous free events, including baby and me walks, postpartum Zoom meetings, comfort measures classes, and community baby showers, all aimed at ensuring that no one feels alone on their pregnancy and postpartum journey.
Motivated by the desire to contribute even more, I embarked on the path to become a Midwife in January 2021, commencing my studies at Southwest Wisconsin Technical College. Currently in the final phase of the midwifery program, I am on the verge of obtaining a second degree in nonprofit leadership. My overarching goal is to provide unwavering support, education, and empowerment to families, helping them find their voice and make informed decisions based on evidence-based information.
As an advocate for positive change in maternal care, I aspire to bridge gaps in community resources. My heart lies in community outreach, firmly believing that the key to transformation starts with hands-on work within the community. I will be contributing my expertise to the Tempe Birth Center, eager to learn from and collaborate with their esteemed midwives.
I am truly grateful for the opportunity to serve and learn from the wonderful midwives at Tempe Birth Center. My commitment to making a lasting impact on the lives of expecting families drives me forward, and I look forward to a future where improved pregnancy, birthing, and postpartum outcomes are the norm. Together, let us strive for a community where every family feels supported, informed, and empowered on their unique journey to parenthood.
Make it stand out
Tia Perry, Apprentice
Peace I am Tia. A old soul deeply intertwined with the rhythm of the earth. I like yoga and its serene flow, old school r&b, and neo soul music. I resonate with earthy vibes, positive energy and enjoy anything that’ll have me laughing. As I love to laugh.
My greatest achievement isn’t written on paper but wrapped up in my 5 beautiful children with whom I adore! It’s a joy to be their mother and I wouldn’t have life any other way!
I am a huge advocate of breastfeeding as I have breastfed 3 of own and always looking to help families in any way that I can. With that my journey on becoming a midwife started with the birth of my 5th child as it was a traumatic experience for me, and that led me to becoming a birth and postpartum doula. So as I look back there are so many of my friends and family that had also experienced traumatic births with no answers, and no regard to how it would and could affect us down the line. This triggered something in me that I always knew was there. Which is me knowing that my calling here was to help moms and families in some way, and I found it! So here I am on this path to becoming a midwife and believing that I can help make a difference. And will make a difference.
Sarah Baxla, Apprentice
Hi! I’m Sarah (She/her). I was born and raised in the Arizona desert. I am a parent, partner, birth doula, childbirth educator and student midwife at Midwives College of Utah. On weekends, you can often find me with my partner and two young kiddos out in the desert mountains that surround Tucson, hiking, gardening, biking, or tending our chickens.
In 2011, I accepted a job at a shelter for women and children with a domestic violence non-profit. This job changed my life, and propelled me serendipitously into the world of advocacy. I spent 7 years working alongside survivors, supporting them to recover the power that others in their lives had withheld from them. I began doing doula work in 2017 with women in the emergency shelter, often as their only support person as they gave birth in the hospital system. I was also expecting my second child under the care of a midwife.
Experiencing these two vastly different dynamics—the provider controlled environment of vulnerable people navigating the medical system, vs my own empowering experience of birthing with a midwife—sparked a fire in my consciousness. How could these parents, who had experienced so much hurt already, be thrust into a system where their births invited more trauma and powerlessness? I found myself wanting to take part in bridging the gap for these birthing people, and support them in experiencing a birth process that transform the narrative from “things happen to my body” to “I am in charge of my body and my birth”.
I am began my journey with TBC in the spring of 2023, and enjoy learning from and working along such passionate advocates of birth empowerment!
Call us at 480-647-2099 or email us if you have any questions.