Chanthanavong wants to be a medical professional, and thanks to his education in the school’s Opportunities in Emergency Care program–part of the Pathways Program–and a recent change to allow those younger than 18 to take the certification test, he’s now a certified Emergency Medical Technician.
“There are still some employers who require 18, but there are some employers who want field experience,” the 17-year-old senior.
OEC Program Director Bill Neiss, a graduate of the program himself, said his students with certification can get jobs with providers that will hire them now, and get a jump on a career in medicine.
“It’s really the first step in medicine, so you can get a job on an ambulance, or the ER, or working sporting events, things like that,” said Neiss. “For students to have an opportunity to make some money while they’re going to college is great.”
Students in nursing, firefighting, and EMR and EMT also compete on a state level, and Quyncee and his classmates took top honors recently.
“It shows the kids they know more than they think they do,” said Neiss. “But there’s a long way to go. There’s always more to know. If you’re going into healthcare, you’re going to be in school the rest of your life.”
And any experience he can get now, either in the classroom, in competition, or on the job is a key to Chanthanavong’s future success.
“It’s prepared me to see what’s required on the field in what to do, and also the human effect of being an EMT,” he said. “Being able to talk to someone who is having the worst day of their life and they are depending on you to make their day better.”
