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Career
Tech graduates first Medical Tech Prep class
By
Bob Robinson
GREENVILLE
– “You are the first,” said Lisa Wendell, Workforce Specialist
for the Darke County Economic Development Center. She was speaking to
11 graduates of the Greenville Career Tech Center’s Medical Tech
Prep program.
“This
is the first time we have matched a workforce need to a training
program,” she continued. The Medical Tech Prep graduates are the
first to complete a Career Tech program and enter the workforce as
STNA’s (State Tested Nursing Assistants).
The
program is an intense 75-hour course over a three week period. All 11
students have either already been hired or have strong prospects they
are considering.
According
to Emily Powers, coordinator of the program, they held a Recruitment
Night. Four nursing homes met with the students the night before.
The
students will enter the healthcare field as STNA’s. They consider
it the first step toward more education and specialization.
“STNA’s
are the eyes of the place,” said one student. “We change
Depends®, give showers, take blood pressure, pulse… we see an
overview of how the patient is doing.”
The
students agreed the best part of the job is helping others. The worst
part?
“Dealing
with death.”
Nearly
all students are on a career track toward becoming RN’s (Registered
Nurses) or LPN’s (Licensed Practical Nurses). One student planned
on going into Physical Therapy while another had taken the first step
on the long road to Pediatrician. One student planned on being a
Phlebotamist…
“Yeah,
she wants to be a vampire,” quipped one of her classmates.
The
graduating class – which met in the evenings - consisted of adult
learners, recent high school graduates, even a girl who won’t
graduate high school until spring.
“This
is a great opportunity,” said one woman who had been out of the
workforce for three years. “Without experience there are just no
jobs out there.”
Would
the students recommend the program?
“Yes!”
Unanimous, then “As long as Stephanie Lind is the teacher,” they
added. “She’s awesome, amazing.”
Greenville
City Council President John Burkett and Greenville City School Board
President Sue Bowman did the honors handing the certificates out to
the students.
“You
have upgraded the city significantly,” Burkett, a former teacher in
the school district, said. “You have worked at improving
yourselves. You are to be congratulated.”
The
students who will be starting on their health careers are Logan
Adkins, Vickie Burton, Colleen Fry, Dreema Garber, Ashley Massey,
Raychel Shumaker, Danielle Smith, Joni Thomas, Tammy Wolf, Samantha
Schmidt and Katie Smallwood.
According
to Marc Saluk, Director of the Darke County Economic Development
Office, this is a collaboration between Partnering for Progress,
local businesses and the Career Development Center.
“A
lot of our workforce efforts at this point have been getting people
into the workplace,” he said. “They have to be better equipped to
join the workforce and we’ve been working on skilled positions
because we know there’s a shortage.”
This
is the first one designed specifically to address one shortage…
also the P4P’s first foray into the healthcare field, he noted.
“This
went smoother and faster than anything we’ve done in the past,”
Saluk said. “I simply can’t thank Emily Powers at the CTEC
(Career Technology Education Center) enough for the success of this
program.”
He
noted the employers were pleased as were the students.
“This
has generated more response from potential students than anything
we’ve done in the past,” he added. “We’ve had a lot of
requests from people who want to get into the program… so we’ll
be doing this again.”
Published
courtesy of The Early Bird
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