In January of 2020, Emma was referred to the WIOA program by the ladies at the Chickasha Adult Learning Center. Emma dropped out of high school when she was a junior back in 2012 and wanted to go back to school to get her high school equivalency diploma. Emma had been attending classes and was close to being ready to take the HiSET when one of the WIOA case managers met with her. Emma’s case manager went over the program with her and together they talked about Emma’s barriers and goals to develop an individualized service strategy. Her number one goal was to get her high school equivalency diploma and then she wanted to continue her education in the medical field. Her drive to accomplish all this was her daughter, she wanted she make her daughter proud and to be able to better provide for her family. After enrolling, a supportive service was submitted to help Emma pay for her HiSET test so she wouldn’t have to worry about the cost. In March of 2020, Emma passed all her HiSET tests and earned her high school equivalency diploma. Right about the time Emma received her high school equivalency diploma, the state was shut down due to COVID, which put a hold on many people’s plans. But Emma still wanted to continue her education, so in July 2020 she enrolled in the online Clinical Medical Specialist program with MedCerts. While in training, Emma stayed on top of her schoolwork, family life, and kept in touch with her case manager. Towards the end of her MedCerts program, Emma started doing clinicals to gain hands on experience and later became employed as a phlebotomist at Southern Plains Medical Center. Emma finished her training with MedCerts in April 2021 and has been employed as a phlebotomist for six months now. She is now better able to help provide for her family and she enjoys the work she does. Emma is still determined to continue educating herself and moving up the medical career ladder. Her next goal is to go to college at Rose State for the Nursing Science program. With the help of Adult Basic Education and the WIOA program, Emma is well on her way to better her life and growing a career that she enjoys.
