Sarah Hamid, a student midwife in the Los Angeles area, joins Augustine to talk about what the direct entry midwifery education crisis has meant for students this summer. Sarah is a student at the National College of Midwifery (NCM), which lost its MEAC accreditation, and she walks through the timeline as she has documented it, from MEAC’s decision to step away from federal recognition to the withdrawal of NCM’s accreditation. She also explains how the acronyms fit together (MEAC, NARM, PEP, CPM) and what her own options look like in California.

The conversation goes beyond the timeline to the reasons students feel left behind: the financial pressure on a student population that is largely working-class, parenting, and rural, and the lack of communication and accountability from the institutions involved. Sarah and Augustine also talk about holding compassion for institutional leaders while still naming harm, why midwifery education should be midwife-led, and what preceptors and senior midwives can do today.

What We Cover
-Sarah’s path to midwifery and her experience as an NCM student near the end of her education
-A plain-language breakdown of MEAC, NARM, PEP, CPM, and how direct entry education connects to licensure
-The timeline of this summer’s events: the Department of Education report, MEAC’s statement, and NCM’s suspension and withdrawal
-What the federal report alleges, as Sarah describes it from publicly available documents
Sarah’s options in California, including PEP, the bridge program, and the California-specific exam
-Who student midwives are right now, and what the cost of becoming a midwife looks like
-Holding frustration and compassion together, and why the lack of accountability is the central issue
-The case for midwife-led education programs and midwifery-specific business training
-Support for student midwives who are parents
-Why this connects to the devaluing of feminized labor, with a book recommendation
-A direct ask to preceptors and senior midwives

Resources Mentioned
Sarah’s Substack, with the full chronological timeline: sarahmichalhamid.substack.com
Sarah’s social media: www.instagram.com/talesofadai
The Farmer and the Obstetrician: https://a.co/d/07rcWj7x
Start a Midwifery Business Right: https://www.midwiferywisdomcollective.com/ceu-courses-midwifery/starting-a-birth-business-right
Student Midwife’s Keepsake Journal: https://www.midwiferywisdomcollective.com/student-midwife-journal