Lone Star College-CyFair’s Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) graduates were not only 100% prepared to begin their health care career upon graduation, they were all hired in area community clinics.
This is especially significant given the COVID-19 pandemic and severe health care worker shortage taking place in the region.
"We are pleased our students are making an impact in the health care community," said LSC-CyFair President Dr. Seelpa Keshvala. "The dedicated efforts and guided support of our workforce faculty and Career and Technical Education team has been exceptional as they prepare our students for such essential careers."
In the past year and a half, 100% of LSC-CyFair’s 40 CNA students passed the required state test and 100% were employed in their field. The same success is expected of the spring 2020 students whose testing was delayed due to COVID.
Among the area partners employing LSC-CyFair students are Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District, Grace Care Centers and Memorial Hermann Hospital, just to name a few.
Future pediatric occupational therapist Eugene Park was immediately employed as a CNA at Legend Oaks Rehabilitation Center. Having done her clinical rotations at the center while earning her workforce certificate, she found the job environment familiar and comfortable.
“For me, when I clocked out, I felt so satisfied that I was able to impact someone’s life and be a part of meeting a resident’s needs whenever they called for help,” she said.
Among the lessons Park said she learned in the CNA program were accountability, responsibility, and the professional and hands-on skills that are used to save lives each and every day. She also gives credit and thanks to Professor Olympiatta Washington for supporting all her students in the classroom on through to employment.
“She did a tremendous job to help every single student in her class feel confident in what they learned,” said Park. “And she didn’t stop there, she was with her students throughout the whole certification process.”
Professor Washington said LSC-CyFair’s program instructors try to connect with their students; go above and beyond to ensure students are able to meet their educational goals; often spending countless hours advising students on career paths and of course, writing recommendation letters.
“In addition to teaching students the importance of showing empathy and kindness to patients, I am constantly revising the program content to ensure it meets the needs of the health care industry,” she said. “I believe we do a great job preparing our students for the real world of health care. Our students are often offered a position even before completing the program.”
LSC-CyFair’s CNA program is one of several health care-related workforce programs that have above average exam pass rates, employer satisfaction rates and successful job placement.
For example, LSC-CyFair’s Medical Assistant program has a job placement rate average of 96.8% in the past five years with 100% employer satisfaction rate. The program was also named among the top 20 nationwide as reported in GradReports.com’s 2020 Best Colleges for Earning Potential list.
For information on the CNA program as well as other health care certificate and degree programs, go to LoneStar.edu/wf-health-sciences.
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Helping more than 23,000 students reach their academic and career goals, Lone Star College-CyFair is the fifth comprehensive college in the Lone Star College System, located at 9191 Barker Cypress Road just 3 miles south of U.S. Highway 290. Start close and go far at LSC-CyFair as well as at LSC-Cypress Center, located at 19710 Clay Road and LSC-Westway Park Technology Center, located at 5060 Westway Park Boulevard. For more information about LSC-CyFair and its programs, call 281.290.3200 or visit LoneStar.edu/cyfair.
Lone Star College offers high-quality, low-cost academic transfer and career training education to 93,000+ students each semester. LSC is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to support student success. Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., serves as chancellor of LSC, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area with an annual economic impact of nearly $3 billion. LSC consists of seven colleges, 10 centers, two university centers, Lone Star Corporate College and LSC-Online. To learn more, visit LoneStar.edu.