Carolina’s Success Story | Hillsboro, OR
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Carolina, 44, a single mother of two, worked for the last 14 years at a nursery in Cornelius, OR pruning and planting different kinds of plants, earning $10.00 an hour when there was work. Her day would start as early as 4:00 am, she would have to get her kids up and ready for the babysitter and be at work by 5:00 am. During the busy planting season, she would finish at midnight working 15-18 hours a day during this season was common. Hours were paid a flat rate as agricultural workers are not eligible for overtime. While the extra pay helped, she also had to pay a babysitter those additional hours, and she didn’t get to see her kids very often.
Carolina heard about Oregon Human Development Corporation (OHDC) from a friend, and she knew that they helped with learning English. She was on a layoff and decided to visit OHDC, determined to make a change. She wanted to learn English because she knew that was the key to better employment than just continuing to work in the nursery. OHDC and Carolina started with local ESL classes delivered by Goodwill staff in our office. They started working intensively using Rosetta Stone language software. OHDC helped her assess what she might want to focus on in terms of a new career. Through one-on-one assessments, targeted discussions Carolina and OHDC staff narrowed down her employment goals. |
OHDC offered Carolina Job Readiness classes, Customer Service, Work ethics, Conflict Resolution, and Financial Literacy classes through Wells Fargo. It was a lot to absorb for her, but she never complained and kept a positive attitude in her classes. Through OHDC’s relationship with Amanecer Chiropractic Clinic, we were able to set up a short term Work Experience as their office assistant/receptionist. During those 300 hours, she learned office skills, applied her recent customer service training, operated all the office equipment, and interacted with customers on a daily basis.
Carolina did such a great job in her Work Experience with Amanecer Chiropractic Clinic. OHDC was able to transition her onto a short-term OJT (On-The-Job Training) with Amanecer. Carolina went from earning $10.00 an hour working upwards of 18 hours a day or 0 hours depending on the season to learning by working at a starting wage of $12.00 for 40 hours a week. Carolina was not done yet; she learned that with some additional training, she could become a Chiropractic Assistant. Carolina is no stranger to hard work and applied herself once more. Carolina attained a Chiropractic Assistant Certification, with the help of OHDC. Carolina is now earning $14.00 an hour as a full-time Chiropractic Assistant.
Carolina says: “Set goals and don’t stop working towards them, because hard work and dedication pays off. Thanks to programs like OHDC for giving me the training and the services that helped me succeed and continue to achieve my goals; one of them to buy my own house for my children and I.”
Carolina did such a great job in her Work Experience with Amanecer Chiropractic Clinic. OHDC was able to transition her onto a short-term OJT (On-The-Job Training) with Amanecer. Carolina went from earning $10.00 an hour working upwards of 18 hours a day or 0 hours depending on the season to learning by working at a starting wage of $12.00 for 40 hours a week. Carolina was not done yet; she learned that with some additional training, she could become a Chiropractic Assistant. Carolina is no stranger to hard work and applied herself once more. Carolina attained a Chiropractic Assistant Certification, with the help of OHDC. Carolina is now earning $14.00 an hour as a full-time Chiropractic Assistant.
Carolina says: “Set goals and don’t stop working towards them, because hard work and dedication pays off. Thanks to programs like OHDC for giving me the training and the services that helped me succeed and continue to achieve my goals; one of them to buy my own house for my children and I.”
