Sendra Rios never thought that she and her son Cesar would be in a nursing class together.
Since 2011, Sendra has worked as a Radiologic Technologist at Signature Care, but
she wanted to increase her skills. She also found that she liked caring for patients,
so she decided to apply to the Licensed Vocational Nursing Program at OC to become
a nurse.
She enrolled and was accepted into the LVN program. After successfully completing
the program in December 2023, she transitioned to the LVN-to-RN program and will graduate
with her Associate in Applied Science Degree in Nursing in December 2024. Throughout
all her nursing classes, she continued to work full time at Signature Care.
Her son Cesar said, “I had worked at various jobs since graduating from high school
in 2017. I would see Mom studying for her classes, and it looked interesting.”
Sendra stated that she never thought she and Cesar would be in the nursing class together,
but he applied to the RN program and was accepted, and now they will graduate together.
“I’m very proud of him – it’s hard and he has done so well,” she said with a warm
smile.
“It’s been surreal,” Cesar said of the experience. “She inspired me, and we helped
each other during our studies. I’m proud to have stuck with it and finished.”
The two plan to follow similar paths after they graduate. During their clinical rotations,
both discovered that they shared a passion for emergency care. Cesar plans to continue
working at Midland Memorial Hospital where he has been interning in the Emergency
Room, and Sendra looks forward to advancing her role at Signature Care, transitioning
from a technician to a nurse.