Workforce Education

Student Spotlight

New Hope for Displaced Worker

Ramona (Felicia) Breazeale of Kent received a phone call on May 13, 2005 that changed her life. "Don’t bother coming back to work tomorrow," the voice at the other end of the phone said. "Your position has been outsourced." The overwhelming reality of her responsibility as a single mother was scary. "I wasn’t sure what I was going to do," Felicia shared. "I needed to provide for my daughter and the security of a steady job was gone."

Felicia discovered she qualified for Worker Retraining benefits, education funding for unemployed workers, those facing imminent layoffs, displaced homemakers, and small business owners whose companies have closed due to general economic decline in their industry or region.

Felicia met with various colleges in the area, attended job fairs, and talked to counselors about her options. "I wanted to make the best of this opportunity that I had with funding to return to school. I remembered a time in my past when I was doing physical therapy for a work related injury," said Felicia. "The therapist talked to me about how ideal I would be for this kind of work environment." So when an educational planner at Green River began to talk to Felicia about a career in physical or occupational therapy, everything came together.

Felicia started the Occupational Therapy Assistant program in fall of 2005. She enrolled in Green River’s TRIO program, a federally funded program that provides support for first generation and low-income college students as well as those with disabilities. She also received assistance from the college’s WorkFirst program, a state-funded tuition assistance program that helps working parents learn new skills.

"Life hasn’t slowed down since then," added Felicia. "The class work was engaging and I couldn’t wait to come to class to learn more. Then when I began to work in clinical settings, it all came together. This was the field that I was meant to be in!" In June, Felicia will graduate from Green River, and she will complete her internship over the summer and sit for the national certification exam. Once Felicia passes the exam, she will be eligible for state licensure.

When talking about the last two years, Felicia is very optimistic. "I know that for many of my former co-workers, the last two years haven’t been so positive. But I learned that life doesn’t stop when things take a turn for the negative. I have found people along the way that supported me and helped me achieve my goals and I am in a much better place today." "I needed to provide for my daughter and the security of a steady job was gone." "I have found people along the way that supported me and helped me achieve my goals and I am in a much better place today."