Misty White’s journey toward family self-sufficiency hit a major milestone Tuesday evening.
White was one of the first two participants in CAP Tulsa’s CareerAdvance program to graduate from Tulsa Community College’s Registered Nurse program during a ceremony for graduates at the University of Oklahoma-Tulsa campus.
“Oh my goodness — I’ve been on Cloud 9 since last Saturday when I passed my last test,” White said. “I don’t think I’ve stopped smiling.”
White, who with her husband has five kids, always dreamed of being a nurse in a neonatal intensive care unit. She put her education on hold years ago to raise her children, but thanks to CareerAdvance she had the opportunity to realize that dream and help put her family in a much better situation financially.
“There was just never the funds,” White said. “With me being married, I didn’t qualify for the grants that usually go to single moms or others with special needs.”
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CareerAdvance is a work-readiness program that provides coaching, education, training and job opportunities to parents of children enrolled in CAP Tulsa’s early childhood programs, Educare or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF.
The program is designed to help parents be successful in a career path leading them to economic self-sufficiency and allowing them to better provide for their children.
White said CAP Tulsa — Community Action Project of Tulsa County — took care of all her school costs, even shoes and stethoscopes, while she was part of the program.
“They supported us 100 percent,” she said. “They even give gas cards to get to class if that’s needed.”
Now White said she’s much more prepared for the future, and the family plans to buy their first home next year and a reliable vehicle.
“This is going to be a huge change,” she said. “Being a one-income family with five kids, it takes a lot to feed and care for them. We have a 14-year-old now and a 13-year-old right behind him. We’re getting into those years where it’s going to start getting really expensive real fast.”
Amber Sanchez realized about five years ago that she wanted to become a nurse while she was caring for her ailing grandmother.
“Being there for her made me realize I wanted to do that and be there for others,” Sanchez said.
Soon after, she found out about the CareerAdvance program and enrolled. She was also recognized for completing the RN program Tuesday and gave CAP Tulsa credit for providing her an opportunity she otherwise would not have had.
“It’s definitely an amazing feeling,” Sanchez said. “I’m going to be able to actually provide for my family, which is huge. I also feel that I can give back for once. CAP helped me so much, and now I can go out and help others the way they did for me.”
White and Sanchez are the first to complete the program through the RN track.
Since the program was started in 2009, more than 150 participants have earned certification as nursing assistants, patient care technicians, licensed practical nurses, professional coders, coding assistants and registered medical assistants, said Grace Nelson, lead program specialist with CareerAdvance.
A total of 20 participants were recognized at the graduation ceremony Tuesday evening.
“It’s exciting because the career coaches and participants work so hard to get where they are,” Nelson said. “They have all obviously had some barriers in life that prevented them from being where they wanted to be in employment or education. … This helps them overcome those barriers.”
