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The Edmundite Missions are celebrating the first two graduates of their Forward with the Missions Fellowship Program this week.
“The Forward with the Missions Fellowship Program seeks to continue to turn the services of the Missions into solutions that help bring our neighbors onto a path towards self-reliance,” said Edmundite Missions CEO Chad McEachern. “Over a year ago now, I looked at the demand for RN’s around the Black Belt region and worked with Wallace [Community College] here in Selma to determine the obstacles towards success in their wonderful program. We identified that while a lot of resources are available to pay for classes or books, many of the students fail to matriculate from their LPN to RN because of the time demands. How does a young mother do clinicials, classes, work full-time, and raise her family at the same time? We were able to identify the problem, then we just needed to design the solution.”
McEachern called the Forward with the Missions Fellowship Program the solution to the identified problem.
The program seeks to provide social assistance to help students worry less about a utility bills, rent, childcare, or car payments and focus more on achieving their degree.
“The difference in salary between an LPN and a RN is staggering and can help move a family from the edge of poverty to the middle-class,” said McEachern.
The first to fellows to complete the program are Sarah Wilson and Quinshea Walker.
“As our first two fellows graduate, we are so proud,” said McEachern. “While I wish the pandemic was gone so we could have a celebration worthy of their accomplishments, I’m so proud to present them with a small certificate on behalf of everyone at the Edmundite Missions. We can’t wait to see all the great things they do in our community.”