From Student to Healthcare Professional: Josie’s Next Step Forward

Read Part 1 of Josie's story here.

When we last shared Josie’s story, she was preparing to begin a new chapter.

With support from the Student Success Fund, Josie started a phlebotomy course - an opportunity that would allow her to pursue her interest in healthcare and build new skills for her future.

Now, she’s finished the course and is already putting her training to work.

“The course was amazing. I loved it. I love being in healthcare,” Josie said.

The course gave Josie the opportunity to learn both in the classroom and alongside her fellow students.

Now, Josie has started a new position at the Vista Community Clinic, where she will finish her remaining requirements and take the state board test.

Since beginning her job at VCC, Josie has been able to use her existing training while continuing to learn new roles and skills. Her phlebotomy training will now become another opportunity to grow within the organization.

For Josie, the opportunity represents more than simply completing another requirement. It means continuing to build a career in a field she loves.

“I'm able to learn different roles there and use my different trainings that I have there. So, I feel like there's room for improvement.”

For now, Josie plans to stay at Vista Community Clinic and continue growing.

That stability and sense of possibility are exactly what the Student Success Fund was created to support.

Josie’s journey is a reminder that moving forward isn’t always about one major turning point. Sometimes, it’s about having access to the education, training, and resources that make the next step possible.

For Josie, that next step is a career in healthcare, and the opportunity to use what she has learned to help others.

When asked what she would say to the people who made her phlebotomy training possible, Josie kept her message simple:

“Thank you for allowing my goals and my dreams to flourish, and for me to be able to go back to school and learn this new trade…being able to be there to help others who are like me.”

That is the impact of the Student Success Fund.

It doesn’t simply fund a class or cover the cost of a certification. It helps open doors. It gives the parents at Solutions for Change the chance to pursue goals, develop new skills, and build careers that can create greater stability for themselves and their families.

Josie is still taking those steps - but now, she’s taking them in a career she loves, with a community behind her.