Crystal Norwood is now a traveling nurse and will shortly be receiving her nurse practitioner degree – and she gives CareerSource Northeast Florida (CareerSource NEFL) the credit for getting her started in what has been an exciting, profitable and rewarding career in healthcare.
“When you’re young, you know what you want to do but you just don’t know how to get there or which direction to go,” Norwood said. “Definitely, CareerSource Northeast Florida can help you along that way down that path – giving you the resources you need to go in that direction.”
Back in 2008, Norwood chose to take advantage of tuition assistance, called Individual Training Accounts, provided by CareerSource NEFL. The funding is based on the applicant’s need determination and can include tuition assistance along with a books allowance, uniforms/supplies and vocational guidance.
“I was living in Palatka, Florida when I heard about the ITA program, and it helped me pay for some of my tuition with the Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) program,” Norwood said. “CareerSource was there to provide me a list of schools, and they even helped me with the application.”
When she completed that program, Norwood decided to get her Registered Nurse (RN) degree. By then, she was living in Jacksonville, so she attended the Jersey College of Nursing on Baymeadows Road. With CareerSource NEFL’s help, she received a scholarship to help her pay for that tuition.
“At the time, I had two children and was pregnant with my third, and was still working full time on the weekend,” she said. “Being a single mother, when they helped out with my tuition, it was major. Tammie Jackson was my coordinator, and she was absolutely phenomenal. She would check up on me if I needed anything, look out for me…it was like having a fairy godmother who was there to help me all along the way. There was no way I could have done it without their help.”
Today, Crystal is a traveling nurse and also works in the emergency room, with trauma patients and works in Covid-19 Relief – recently assisting health care workers in New York, Georgia, Texas, California, Pennsylvania and throughout Florida.
She encourages job seekers, especially young people who aren’t sure about their career direction, to visit CareerSource Northeast Florida.
“The organization is definitely there to help you create the foundation to help you grow,” she said. “They provide excellent service. It was not just providing the tuition, which is a major help, and especially for young people. CareerSource Northeast Florida was there for me the entire time and every step of the way. I couldn’t have done this without them.”
If you are interested in learning more about CareerSource NEFL training and scholarship opportunities, please call us at 904- 356-JOBS (5627) or visit our website at www.careersourcenefl.com and check out the training tab under ‘Job Seekers.’
“The organization is definitely there to help you create the foundation to help you grow,” she said. “They provide excellent service. It was not just providing the tuition, which is a major help, and especially for young people. CareerSource Northeast Florida was there for me the entire time and every step of the way. I couldn’t have done this without them.”
If you are interested in learning more about CareerSource NEFL training and scholarship opportunities, please call us at 904- 356-JOBS (5627) or visit our website at www.careersourcenefl.com and check out the training tab under ‘Job Seekers.’