Greene technical school boasts perfect pass rate in practical nursing
WAYNESBURG – The practical nursing classes at Greene County Career and Technical Center had perfect passing rates for state-mandated board exams three out of the past four years.
The pristine passage rates, which included the 19 students in last year’s class, come as the field and nursing schools are seeing a decrease in the number of licensed practical nurses interested in the trade.
Class sizes dwindled recently and this year’s group of 14 students is about half what a typical year brings, said Wendy Bouchard, who coordinates the CTC’s practical nursing program.
“There is a shortage of nurses across the country,” Bouchard said. “It’s not an easy job. It takes a special type of person.”
The recent board passage rate is something the school takes pride in as students move on to their careers. The national passage rate is 81 percent, with the Pennsylvania being only slightly better at 82 percent, according to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing.
“We’re a small program, but we’re valuable,” Bouchard said. “It’s been very successful. There are people in the community who don’t know we exist because we’ve been under the radar.”
The career center, which began the practical nursing program in 1970, is attracting a diverse group of students, whether it be their ages – which range from 19 to 55 – or their home states. Half of this year’s group comes from West Virginia, with the majority of the remaining students living in Greene County.
Athena Cress of Masontown, W.Va., came to the center after finding long waiting lists at technical schools in her home state.
“It’s important for people to know this exists because West Virginia (schools) are so hard to get into,” Cress said.
They also have a wide range of career desires. Some want to work in a long-term care facilities or hospitals, while Faye Parker, 55, of Mannington, W.Va., wants to learn the trade so she can join her husband in overseas missionary work.
The low enrollment numbers in recent years is allowing the career school to open a second class in January for the first time in years. The smaller classes sizes, however, appear to be beneficial for the students, with teachers able to spend more one-on-one time.
“The teachers are amazing,” said Darianne Medlen, 19, of Wind Ridge. “They don’t just teach, you can tell they care.”
The perfect board passage rate does not mean all students who began the year will finish. Some will leave before the final exam. That happened to Medlen last year, who returned with this class to try again.
“They made me believe in myself and that it just wasn’t my year,” Medlen said of the encouragement she received from the teachers to try again.
The group has built a cohesive bond that encourages each other, the students said.
“You don’t want to go through this program just to fail,” said Jessica Van Etten of Morgantown, W.Va.
With another six months left in the class, the students are adamant they’re going to continue the career center’s hot streak with passing the board exam.
“We’re not going to break that streak,” Parker said. “I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m too old to fail.”