Pictured are mothers and daughters (l to r) Angie Simpson, Brittany Baker, Stephani Carbary, and Sonia Carbary.
A career in health care runs in the family for two mothers and their daughters at the $$Bristol Campus. Graduate Angie Simpson and her daughter, student Brittany Baker; along with mother-daughter duo Sonia and Stephani Carbary, all have medical assisting in common. But that’s not the only thing.
Both mothers influenced their daughters’ choice of school. When Brittany found herself with a daughter of her own to support, Angie, who graduated in 2005, urged her to further her education in order to be able to better provide for herself and her family. “She came to me one day and said ‘Ma, I’m thinking about going to college – where do I go, what do I do?’ explained Angie, who replied, ‘Well…you can go where I went!”
While the situation was slightly different for Sonya and Stephani, the maternal influence was nonetheless crucial. “I came back for my degree because I’d already had three career changes,” explained Sonia. Stephani had already been to another college, but wasn’t happy with the result. “I actually went to [another] college, and finished, but the career I had was kind of low on the totem pole,” she admitted. Disillusioned by that experience, she was resistant to the idea of returning to school at first, but Sonia prevailed.
“Once she got me down here, and I got to looking at the programs they had, I decided that they had careers I’d love to go into,” Stephani explained.
[img]All four women are in complete agreement on one thing: their appreciation for their program director, Director of Healthcare Education Sheri Jessee. “She is an awesome teacher…she is so helpful,” said Angie. “Once I got her…everything became clear.”
Angie worked as a medical assistant for several years after graduation. She even worked with National College externs. “I helped train a lot of them when I was working…it was fun,” she said. Currently, she is a stay-at-home mom raising two younger children and helping out from time-to-time at her husband’s business. As her younger children enter school, though, she knows she has access to National’s career center (a lifetime benefit) and admits she is looking forward to getting back into the workforce.
For her part, daughter Brittany is nearing the halfway point of her program and enjoying herself. “I just felt like this was the perfect school – I love it,” Brittany said. Sonia agrees. “Everybody…makes you feel that you’re singled out as a person, not as a number, and I just really love it here,” she related.
Is there competition in the family? “Definitely! What are you talking about, this is my mom!” exclaimed Stephani. Sonia echoed that sentiment, but mother and daughter both agree that they support each other as well.
One thing is clear: the advantages of a National education is one thing all four ladies agreed on – as have many other students and graduates who have family members who are National alumni. Read their stories inside this special issue.
In the middle photo, Sonia Carbary practices drawing blood from her daughter Stephani under the watchful eye of their instructor, Director of Health Care Education Sheri Jessee.
