Why would a group of Metro MedPro students give up two weeks of their summer vacation to attend nonstop classes, take multiple daily quizzes, learn unfamiliar techniques and apply new skills in a nursing home setting? The answer is simple: to secure a brighter future for themselves by becoming employed as Certified Nurse Assistants.
These young ladies have a reason to be proud of what they are accomplishing in order to get high-paying jobs. The pace of the Certified Nurse Assisting (CNA) class requires several chapters of material to be learned each day, with a quiz after each chapter. Each new set of skills is demonstrated and practiced in class and then put to use as the students interact with the care facility’s residents. The pace is non-stop and challenging but they know it will result in their being prepared for the Arkansas CNA certification exam.
“I’m going home and brag about what I’ve done! I really like it,” said class partcipant Shondreshia Morris about what she would do after completing the class.
The program has taken place on the campus of Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia as part of the Consortium for Arkansas Medical Professions (CAMP). The CAMP teaching staff includes Mary Armwood, Youth Apprenticeship advisor and SAU nursing faculty member, as the primary instructor for Certified Nurse Assistant and Cyndi Graham, SAU nursing faculty member, as an additional instructor for CNA.
To ensure that the students are prepared not only to pass the CNA exam but to begin a successful search for employment after receiving their certifications, sessions on “How to Approach Applying for a Job” and “Resume Building” have been presented by Matt Taylor, a volunteer from the SAU chapter of Alpha Psi Omega, national honorary theatre fraternity. The activities focus on what is expected of a young person entering the health care workforce and provide practical information about interviews and resumes. One of the Metro students, Cree Love, said, “I’ve learned a ‘real world’ perspective from all of this.”
Also, CAMP has led to the students discovering new areas of interest or confirming previous choices.
“CAMP has helped define what I’m going to do,” said Tyanne Jackson. “And, what I don’t want to do.”
Hayli Stricklen summed up her CAMP experience by saying that she would now be able to find a job that applies all the skills she learned.
Stricklen’s comments state the true purpose behind the program because it is designed to provide opportunities that lead to high-skilled, high-paying jobs for Arkansas students interested in the medical professions.
For more information about CAMP activities or SAU Youth Apprenticeship programs, contact Robbye Meador Taylor at (870)235-5073.
