Philadelphia high school students get job training and opportunities at Jefferson Health

CBS News

2 days ago

Jefferson Health is filling some job openings with a special free training program for Philadelphia high school students.
The joint venture from Jefferson, the School District of Philadelphia and Esperanza College is providing some much-needed job training and opportunities.
Aleycha Peralta, who's now a student at Esperanza College, was part of the Jefferson Workforce Development Program. She says it was life-changing.
"I thought it was the opportunity of a lifetime," said Peralta, who wants to become a doctor.
The program provides free training to Philadelphia high school students, who can then apply for jobs at Jefferson Health.
"The mission of this program is to provide talent streams for entry-level workforce in the technical space, whether it's a patient care tech, medical assistant, surgical tech," said Theresa Fortner, who oversees the workforce program.
The program helps fill jobs in the Jefferson system and benefits the community.
"These are students that represent undeserved communities, and securing a full-time job here at Jefferson helps stabilize them economically and helps support their families," Fortner said.
The students in the program get 1,000 hours of classroom instruction and hands-on training.
Batoul Ayyash said that through the program, she's decided to become a nurse.
"Our main focus is the patient, so we take care of the patient, we bathe them, we talk to them, we listen to them," Ayyash said. "This allows us to understand the root of health care before we actually go into the medicine."
So far, 38 students have completed the workforce program, including many who now work at Jefferson.