Before participating in a JVS program in 2008, April was a nurse for 22 years. Although she had experience in nursing homes, clinics, and college health settings, she hadn’t worked in an acute care environment—like a hospital emergency room—for over a decade. That gap limited her options for pursuing higher-paying roles in acute healthcare facilities.

“I was a stay-at-home mom for about seven years,” April explains. “When I returned to work, I couldn’t get an acute position, so I started looking at educational programs.”

April enrolled in JVS’s Nursing Refresher program at City College of San Francisco to refresh her skills and enhance her resume. One of her biggest challenges was adapting to technological advances that had emerged during her time away from acute care, like electronic patient records.

“It felt like I was back in nursing school for a while, which was fine,” April shares. “In my case, it came right back to me.”

After completing the program, April secured a role in an acute care setting at Kaiser Permanente in Redwood City in the neurology department. She also drew on the newfound confidence she gained during the program to pursue her Master’s in Nursing Education and become a clinical instructor.

“I was feeling like I had impostor syndrome, so the JVS program helped me a lot,” April shares. “I went on to spend 15 years in nursing education, and I just completed my FNP [Family Nurse Practitioner] degree this year so that I can become an advanced practice nurse.”

As a single mom, April has built a stable career in nursing over the past seventeen years, which has enabled her to support herself and her four children. Now, she sees her decision to join JVS’s Nursing Refresher program as a turning point in her career.

“JVS gave me a leg up when it wasn’t an easy time to get nursing work,” April explains. “It changed the course of my life. If I hadn’t joined the program, I probably would’ve had to change careers.”

Next, April is looking forward to putting her FNP degree to work as she continues a long career of caring for others while continuing to grow personally and professionally.

“I’ve exceeded my expectations in nursing, and I’ve had a lot of life experiences—lobbying for public policy, emergency response during COVID, and teaching internationally—that I didn’t expect,” April says. “Now, I have many, many options. I have job stability. My youngest child is in college, and I’ve put in a lot of years to get where I am.”