Kayleen Glover will walk across the stage to accept her Medical Assistant Certificate of Completion on Thursday, March 20, 2008, but it was no walk in the park to get there. Kayleen had always wanted to be a physical education teacher, but after a severe knee injury, that dream came to an end. For years, she fulfilled her need to help children as a classified teacher in the Peoria School District; however, after having her knee replaced, an opportunity was offered to her through the State of Arizona Workman's Compensation Program to help her get the education she needed to make a career change. Combining her special interest in children and love of helping others, Kayleen aspired to make that change and enrolled in the medical assistant program offered at Estrella Mountain Community College's SouthWest Skill Center.
The medical assistant program at the SouthWest Skill Center provides students with hands-on training and administrative support in a medical facility. The program generally takes about seven to 14 months to complete; Kayleen finished in just over five. Her determination and unyielding support from her family and instructors helped her to not only excel in the program, but to open her eyes to the doors opening around her. Kayleen will do an externship at a local family practice office and will move on to complete the SouthWest Skill Center's phlebotomy program in approximately two weeks. "It's awesome to go from teaching to getting into the medical field so quickly. Teaching and working with children is what I knew; encouraging them and believing in them to be all they can be was my passion. This is just the beginning," she said. Eventually, she hopes to work with ill or injured children.
Kayleen and 66 other students will celebrate their completion of a SouthWest Skill Center program including medical assistant, phlebotomy, practical nurse, and nurse assistant on Thursday, March 20, 2008 at 6:30pm at the Copper Canyon High School Performing Arts Center located at 9126 West Camelback Road in Glendale.
For more information about Estrella Mountain's SouthWest Skill Center, call 623-535-2700.