The Graduates of Smithwood Medical Institute

Smithwood Medical Institute, Spring 2018 graduates

Community Action Agencies are a powerful force that build economic opportunities throughout their service areas, making the communities stronger and better places to live. Agencies like GCCSA, Inc. bring neighbors and partner organizations together to overcome the barriers faced by the vulnerable. Central to the Promise of Community Action is “helping people help themselves and each other”. That’s why GCCSA works with local organizations like Smithwood Medical Institute (SMI), creating innovative economic development opportunities that allow vulnerable neighbors to prosper.

Smithwood Medical Institute offers comprehensive training programs in Nursing Aide and Phlebotomy, certifying extremely qualified and well trained medical professionals in the highly soughtafter healthcare industry. The Agency is in a collaborative partnership with SMI, offering supportive services and scholarships to students who demonstrate financial need. The collaboration also works to recommend to the Smithwood training program GCCSA customers who are working with Specialists on Case Management Plans of Action, .

Ana Bailey is one of those Agency customers who received a scholarship to SMI. As a single-parent, Ana made the conscious decision to secure her family’s future by furthering her education. She fulfilled Community Action’s promise – going to her Nurse Aide training program full-time and being a fully present mother – by graduating as valedictorian of her 2018 class. In her speech, Ana noted that it “takes a special person to want to care for others. You must have love and compassion for humanity. Choosing to become a Certified Nursing Assistant not only benefits ourselves and our families, it will protect the lives of our community members.”

GCCSA is a Community Action Agency that works to understand the barriers Houston-area families face and develops a collaborative bundle of services – vocational training, scholarships, adult education - to meet community needs, helping vulnerable families climb the economic ladder.