APPLETON, Wis. — Just the thought of going back to school would send Korie Hansen into a panic attack.
She had been down that road once before, and there were potholes as far as her eyes could see.
“I stretched myself way, way, way too thin,” Hansen said of her first college experience. “I had basically hit my limits, and I did not know how to navigate those limits.”
She took a job in child care, but she understood the absence of advanced education would limit her future options. But then her boss suggested she investigate a new program called Career EXCELerate. She did, she enrolled, and now her future looks much more promising.
“Honestly, it makes me feel better,” she said. “Because there’s such a huge emphasis on education in Wisconsin that when you don’t have it, you feel like you’re not doing your absolute best. Especially for the kiddos.”
On Friday, Hansen was one of 30 students in the first graduating class for Career EXCELerate. The program was made possible by a $6.5 million grant to Goodwill NCW from the Wisconsin Workforce Innovation Grant Program. Goodwill then partnered with Fox Valley Technical College (FVTC) and Rawhide to offer training in eight areas where workers are in high demand. There is no cost for those accepted into the program, and participants are guaranteed employment upon graduation.
The program also offers food, transportation, housing and mental health support. Those services continue through training and the first year of employment.
Hansen said removing those barriers enabled her to give college another try, as hard as that was.
“I mean, just getting through the door was a huge struggle for me,” she said.
“And the cost of education is high. Then, my own my own mental health struggles sometimes. Just knowing that I have that safety net was huge for me. Knowing that if I hit a roadblock with my own mental health, I could just go to my navigator and go, ‘Nancy, I need help.’ And know that I would get it. That’s huge, especially when the last time I went to college, I felt very, very alone. I didn’t have that same support I have now, which is amazing.”
The feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction was evident at FVTC Friday, as students shared hugs and high-fives with teachers after they received their certifications.
“This program is really part of our DNA,” said Chris Hess, president and CEO of Goodwill NCW. “We exist solely to help people elevate and overcome their barriers to employment. And the founder of Goodwill famously said that we should all be dissatisfied with our work until every person in our community has the opportunity to develop to their fullest potential. And this program makes that dream possible.
“We believe this program has serious legs and will continue to be successful in the state of Wisconsin. It combines expertise, which means we have a program that serves the entire person. We believe that this is why we see and will continue to see high completion rates.”
Hansen said her hopes of attaining her associate degree and becoming a child care teacher with her own classroom are now possible.
“They’re my happy place,” she said of the children she works with. “Any time I’ve worked with kids, I’ve never really had existential anxiety. Like, I’ll have anxiety because there are kids running around the room with scissors. That’s a different story.
“But just like, ‘Am I in the right spot?’ I know I am. So, they’re my happy place. They’re the place I know I’m supposed to be. That’s why I’ve always worked with kids.”
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