Nurse Aide Students Receive SECU Continuing Ed. Scholarships
WINTERVILLE—Three Pitt Community College students have been awarded State Employees’ Credit Union (SECU) Continuing Education Scholarships that will make it easier for them to pursue additional health care training.
Earlier this month, Raquel-Alicia Cabrera, Alton Ray Hilliard-Howell and Amber Magazine received $750-scholarships from the SECU Foundation that will help cover a variety of educational expenses, including tuition, books and fees, as they further their nurse aide training. All three have completed the Nurse Aide I (NAI) program and are either enrolled or planning to enroll in NAII.
Sidette Boyce, PCC Director of Continuing Education Health Care Programs, says the college is thankful that the SECU Foundation sees the value in supporting Pitt students through scholarships. Their assistance, she says, will have a direct effect on development of a skilled workforce in Pitt County.
“A scholarship of this magnitude has the potential to make such a difference in the education of our students,” Boyce said. “Our previous SECU scholarship recipients benefited greatly from their awards, because it lessened the burden of their educational costs and allowed them to focus on academics and making the most of their college experience.”
Cabrera, a Washington resident, is currently enrolled in PCC’s NAII hybrid pilot program, which combines online learning with traditional classroom instruction.
Hilliard-Howell, who lives in Bethel, is a certified nursing assistant working with Vidant Medical Center. He plans to enroll in NAII at Pitt.
A Winterville resident, Magazine is also planning to complete NAII training at PCC. She is currently working as a nursing assistant in behavioral health.
Started in 2013, SECU’s Continuing Education Scholarship program is designed to help meet the needs of North Carolina’s unemployed and underemployed citizens. The program assists individuals seeking short-term training for new careers or retraining to advance their current job skills through the N.C. Community College System’s Back-to-Work Program and continuing education courses.
The SECU Foundation Board of Directors has approved a one-year commitment of $435,000 to fund Continuing Education Scholarships at each of the state’s 58 community colleges.
03/19/2018