The first youth apprentice program for registered nurses in North Carolina has culminated this year in 14 local students committing to apprenticeships at Northern Regional Hospital in Mount Airy and an additional five signing to continue their employment with Northern Regional Hospital through the Surry-Yadkin Works program at a signing event on May 16 at Surry Community College.
Dr. David Shockley, president of Surry Community College, Surry-Yadkin Works board member, and Northern Regional Hospital board member, offered opening remarks at the event praising the nursing program at Surry Community College and the successful partnership with Surry Yadkin-Works and Northern Regional Hospital.
“The youth apprenticeship program has developed even more amazingly than we could have dreamed,” said Robin Hodgin, senior vice president of patient services and chief nursing officer at Northern Regional Hospital. “We have been truly blessed with this group of students, a group that our staff has grown to love and appreciate. We enjoyed seeing their smiling faces each day, not to mention their eagerness to learn new skills. We know these young ladies have very bright futures ahead, and we hope those futures return them to Northern Regional Hospital.”
The apprentices who signed are Abigail Arce, Fatima Gonzalez, Katelien “Taylor” Haynes, and Taylor Heath, all graduates of Surry Central High School; Sidney Castillo, Evelyn Ruedisueli, and Isabella Seal, graduates of East Surry High School; Summara Euart, Natalee Frazier, and Jerika Garcia, Nadia Hernandez and Brianna McMillian, all North Surry High School graduates; Emily Gutierrez, a graduate of Mount Airy High School; and Abigail Hodges, a graduate of Millennium Charter Academy.
Surry-Yadkin Works apprentices working at Northern Regional Hospital who signed as PRN nurses at the event include Erin Brendle, Claire Hardy, Hailey Penn, and Angelle Phipps, graduates of East Surry High School; and Marissa McCann, a graduate of Surry Central High School.
“PRN” stands for the Latin phrase “Pro re nata,” meaning “as needed,” and “occasionally.”
PRN Nurse Angelle Phipps, said, “I love interacting and connecting with the patients at Northern Regional Hospital to make their stay better. I have experienced so much here, and I hope to learn more. My passion in life is to be there for others in their time of need, help them recover to their full potential, and make a difference in their lives.”
Carrie McKeaver, previously in the Surry Yadkin Works Apprentice Program at Northern Regional Hospital, completed her apprenticeship and received her associate degree in nursing at Surry Community College, and has accepted a Registered Nurse position in the Med/Surg unit at Northern Regional Hospital.
Eryn O’Neal completed her Surry Yadkin Works apprenticeship at Northern Regional Hospital and received her associate degree in nursing at Surry Community College and has accepted a NICU RN position.
Annsley Puckett completed her Surry Yadkin Works Apprenticeship at Northern Regional Hospital and received her associate degree in nursing at Surry Community College and has accepted an ICU RN position.
The apprenticeships are part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Apprenticeship program and the state’s ApprenticeshipNC program through the N.C. Community College System Office that combines a paid work-based learning experience with classroom academics leading to a national certification. These students will earn free tuition for the associate degree in nursing program at a North Carolina community college to become registered nurses.
The students began their paid pre-apprenticeships Jan. 16 and worked through May 19 as certified nursing assistants and patient care technicians. They received high school or college credit for their employment along with a stipend each month for travel expenses through Surry Yadkin Works and were paid by Northern Regional Hospital.
“The partnership that Surry-Yadkin Works has established with Northern Regional Hospital is incredibly exciting for our local students as they are connected early in their educational journey to the hospital, so they can explore career paths,” said Crystal Folger-Hawks, program director of Surry-Yadkin Works. “If it is a good fit, students can continue working at Northern Regional Hospital, while their college education is paid for through the ApprenticeshipNC program. This is a win-win for the business and students, and I am proud to be a part of this endeavor.”
For more information about apprenticeships at Northern Regional Hospital, visit wearenorthern.org/careers or email hrhelp@wearenorthern.org.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
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