Renata Crawford

I honestly stepped out on faith. I believed in myself."

Renata Crawford has always wanted to be in the medical field. But as single parent who’d been out of school for 20 years, she didn’t think she had time for the training. Then her mom had a heart attack. Renata quit her job to stay with her through the long recovery process. And she realized something.

“One night I was sitting next to her, and it came to me that I wanted to be part of the medical team,” said Renata.

The Respiratory Therapist who was part of her mom’s care team had gone through TCC’s program. She told Renata, if I can do it, you can do it.

When Renata applied for financial aid, she found out that she’d missed the financial aid deadline. Fortunately she was eligible for Workforce funding, which paid for her tuition and books. Now that she has financial aid, Renata doesn’t get as much Workforce funding, but the program still fills in the gaps.

After placement testing she enrolled in Adult Basic Education classes.

“I think I just needed that refresher,” said Renata.

She quickly moved up to college-level classes, and now she’s completing her prerequisites for the Respiratory Therapy program as a Phi Theta Kappa student.

She also completed the I-BEST Medical Scribe certificate, and she’s happy with that decision. Her class had two instructors and only about ten students.

“That one-on-one support helped me succeed,” said Renata. “And I can be a medical scribe because I have that certificate. It’s a pathway to my long-term goal.”

Renata is getting closer to her long-term goal every day. She expects to finish her prerequisites by the end of this year, and hopes to get into the Respiratory Therapy program next year. Renata says you shouldn’t count out college just because you think it’s too expensive or too time-consuming.

“I honestly stepped out on faith. I believed in myself,” said Renata.

At first, Renata says, she found it embarrassing to ask when she needed information or help. But she got over it and she’s glad she did, because she’s met a lot of people who want her to succeed.

“There are a lot of resources here that I personally didn’t know about. A lot of times you just have to ask. You’re not alone. I’d say, give it a shot. It’s definitely worth it. It changed my life.”

“If I can do it, you can do it,” added Renata.