One class stood between Lizbeth Padilla and her second semester of nursing school.
“Something just wasn’t clicking,” said the Laurel resident. She had struggled in human anatomy and physiology before. “It was my stone in the road.”
Padilla, who had never needed academic help before, looked into AACC’s academic services and saw the free, one-on-one peer tutoring option. “Never in my life have I had tutoring. … I always just thought it was for fancy people,” she laughed. “But in reality, I realized it’s just an extra boost of help.”
That extra boost made all the difference. Meeting in person and virtually, Padilla was able to ask questions openly and go at a pace that helped her interpret the material that will advance her in the program.
Padilla, who earned her medical assistant certificate and associate degree from AACC two years ago, currently works as a bilingual certified medical assistant with Johns Hopkins Medicine while in school.
A first-generation college student whose parents are from Honduras, she said she finds it rewarding to help someone in a stressful situation communicate with their physician. “It feels good to advocate for the patient's needs in what can be a confusing situation sometimes, even for native English speakers.”
Padilla loves her work as a medical assistant, but hopes to grow with her RN, and eventually as a nurse practitioner. She said the biggest lesson she’s taken from her academic journey is how failure does not define a person and how important faith has been for her.
“You have to find something that pushes you forward. What matters is you get back up and you do what you’re called to do,” she said. “My pathway hasn't been a straight shot, but it’s been a learning experience and God has shown me that.”