
- August 10, 2023
My name is Cheyenne Freeman, and I’m a 21-year-old from Gray, Ga. I grew up in a loving home with my parents and 3 sisters. I graduated high school in 2012 with the idea of wanting to go into the healthcare field. I have wanted to be a nurse for as long as I can remember. I got into Gordon State College back in 2014. Gordon State is about an hour away from my home. It is a great school and I heard so many good things about it. I had previously attended Central Georgia Technical College where I was enrolled in their LPN program. I tried my hardest to finish but life got in the way and I wasn’t able to finish. I was accepted into the Gordon State College’s ASN Nursing program in January of 2017. Sadly, upon entering the program, I had also just lost my job as well. Not knowing how I would make it living on my own, I went ahead and started the nursing program anyway. Later, I was able to have a means to support myself through unemployment and acceptance into the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Program. I was referred to the program by a financial aid person at the school. I was seeking more aid for school and to help with nursing school expenses. Once I qualified for the WIOA program, it immediately began to help cover certain expenses. WIOA paid for tuition, books, and nursing expenses. Also, WIOA paid for things like gas mileage to and from classes and clinical, uniforms, nursing shoes, nursing supplies, and much more. Lastly, more towards the end of nursing school, in my 4th semester, I wasn’t able to work as much and I was so happy to know that the WIOA program helped to cover my expenses for paying for NCLEX payments and graduation requirements. The WIOA program has helped me through all of nursing school, one of the most important and stressful things I’ve ever done in my life. WIOA came through for me for the last two years, and I appreciate the staff and the program for all the help that is provided to students in this area.