Attendee learned about the school, the PCT program, its requirements and how to enroll. They heard from PCT instructor Dr. Ehab Salib, current PCT students and Admissions Representative Aziza Johnson. The next session of PCT classes will begin on March 25.

If you missed the event but are interested in more information, call 973-824-6484 or text 914-627-8219.

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that is currently enrolling for the following programs: Automotive Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Medical Assistant Clinical, Patient Care Technician and Culinary Arts Specialist. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices.

Attendees will learn about the school, the PCT program, its requirements and how to enroll. The next session begins on March 25.

For more information, call 973-824-6484 or text 914-627-8219.

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that is currently enrolling for the following programs: Automotive Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Medical Assistant Clinical, Patient Care Technician and Culinary Arts Specialist. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices.

will host an information session for its Patient Care Technician (PCT) program on Thursday, Feb. 9 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the school���s Main Campus, 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.

Attendees will learn about the school, the PCT program, its requirements and how to enroll. The next session of classes will begin on March 27.

For more information, call 973-824-6484 or text 914-627-8219.

Attendees will learn about the school, the PCT program, its requirements and how to enroll. The next session of classes will begin on March 27.

For more information, call 973-824-6484 or text 914-627-8219.

Thornton was impressed with the employer connections NCCTI offered to its students and liked that it was a short-term program.

���It was definitely something that I was able to do at the time,��� she said.

Thornton graduated from the PCT program in 2020 and started working at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center (formerly Saint Barnabas Medical Center) in Livingston shortly after as a patient care technician. In December, she will celebrate two years in that position.

She works in a surgical step-down unit, which means she provides a level of care between the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and the general medical-surgical ward. She draws blood, performs EKGs, helps nurses with wound care, helps patients walk and perform physical therapy and washes patients.

Thornton has excelled in her role. She was even named Employee of the Month before her probationary period concluded.

Even though she was working full-time at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, Thornton decided to take on another full-time role as a patient care technician at University Hospital in Newark. She started that job in July. She works 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center and a night shift at University Hospital.

Thornton doesn���t plan to work two full-time jobs for an extended period, but has some financial goals to accomplish. She also wants to continue her education and eventually become a physician���s assistant. She is currently at Essex County College working toward becoming a registered nurse.

���We at NCCTI are very proud of the accomplishments made by Christina Thornton. We wish her continued success,��� said NCCTI Director Dr. Sylvia McCray.

Thornton enjoys her work as a patient care technician because it involves service to others. Before enrolling at NCCTI, she had jobs in group homes and homeless shelters.

���I just like helping people and making a difference in people���s lives,��� she said.

Despite starting the PCT program virtually during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Thornton and her classmates were able to get hands-on instruction when conditions improved. Upon completion of the program, she felt prepared to begin her career.

NCCTI helped connect Thornton and her classmates to potential employers. Students were encouraged to fill out applications while on site. She recalls one classmate even received a job offer before she had passed the certification exam. Her own job offer came quickly after her interview.

Thornton is thankful for her experience at NCCTI.

���The staff was really good. It���s a good school,��� she said. ���They definitely do live up to their promise.���

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that offers the following programs: Automotive Technician, Diesel Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Clinical Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Community Healthcare Worker, Culinary Arts Specialist and Business & Computer Technologies. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices. For more information, call 973-824-6484, log onto or visit 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.

Coates first learned about NCCTI from his guidance counselor at KIPP Newark Collegiate Academy, located on Littleton Avenue in Newark. He graduated from high school in 2018 and had been working a variety of jobs including at moving companies and landscaping. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he wasn���t sure what to do. He reached out to his former guidance counselor who provided him with several options. One of them was enrolling at NCCTI.

���NCCTI was a definite option for me and it seemed like the best program possible with something that was needed in my life at the moment,��� Coates said.

Before he enrolled, Coates learned his grandfather had been diagnosed with cancer and he wanted to educate himself to be able to help in any possible way. He decided to join the PCT program to be able to care for his grandfather.

���Unfortunately I wasn���t able to even show him the skills I learned or help him out because he died about a week before I graduated. But it opened up more for me because that���s what gave me the idea to take it as far as I can,��� Coates said. ���It started out as me just wanting to help him out and now it opened up the door for me to be in the medical oncology space.���

Prior to his graduation in May 2021, NCCTI personnel helped Coates get a job as a patient sitter at University Hospital. In that role, he did one-on-one interventions with patients. During his shift, he would sit with a patient, watch TV and play games with them and speak with them. He found the job beneficial because he was able to get used to the hospital setting and interact with patients.��

Once Coates graduated, University Hospital promoted him to Patient Care Technician. He does a variety of tasks for patients and nurses, including helping patients to the bathroom, feeding them, cleaning and drawing blood.

���I enjoy it a lot,��� he said.

He now has aspirations to become an Assistant Director of Nursing. He���s currently working to start prerequisite classes at Essex County College so he can get an associate���s degree in nursing and progress from there.

���I am so proud of Mr. Coates and all our students graduating from NCCTI,��� said NCC Chief Operating Officer and NCCTI Interim Director Fred Hunter. ���Our graduates are leaving school with the knowledge needed to be successful in their chosen program area.���

Coates felt prepared to enter the workforce after graduating. Because of the pandemic, he participated in a hybrid program where he had in-person instruction two days per week and conducted the rest of his learning on the computer. He said this schedule was beneficial because he does computer work as part of his job and was grateful for the additional practice.

PCT Instructor Dr. Maha Koltowski believes that Coates has a bright future ahead.

���He was attentive and hard-working,��� she said.

Coates is happy with his current path and attributes his success to NCCTI.

���I want to thank the staff. They really changed my life,��� Coates said. ���Everybody showed a tremendous amount of love and gave me so much hope doing this program at a time that was hard for me. They were just so loving. They made me want to come to school every day. I���m just appreciative of them.���

He is also working to pay it forward. His supervisors asked if he knew of any other NCCTI graduates looking for work. He reached out to Koltowski to see if anyone needed assistance getting connected to University Hospital.

���I���m more than willing to help because they helped me so much and I just want to be a bridge,��� Coates said. ���Somebody had to help me so there���s nothing wrong with reaching back. I want to help.���

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that offers the following programs: Automotive Technician, Diesel Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Clinical Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Community Healthcare Worker, Culinary Arts Specialist and Business & Computer Technologies. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices. For more information, call 973-824-6484, log onto or visit 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.

CMA Zoom Information Session:

Dec. 15, 2021 at 10 a.m.

Join Zoom Meeting:

Meeting ID: 834 6346 0875
Passcode: CMA

If you���re unable to participate in the information session, please contact Aziza Johnson, Student Recruiter/Admissions Representative, at ajohnson@newcommunity.org��or call the main number at 973-824-6484.

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that offers the following programs: Automotive Technician, Diesel Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Clinical Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Community Healthcare Worker, Culinary Arts Specialist and Business and Computer Technologies. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices. For more information, call 973-824-6484, log onto or visit 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.

PCT Zoom Information Session:

Dec. 14, 2021 at 10 a.m.

Join Zoom Meeting:

Meeting ID: 826 9749 0228
Passcode: PCT

If you���re unable to participate in the information session, please contact Aziza Johnson, Student Recruiter/Admissions Representative, at ajohnson@newcommunity.org��or call the main number at 973-824-6484.

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that offers the following programs: Automotive Technician, Diesel Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Clinical Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Community Healthcare Worker, Culinary Arts Specialist and Business and Computer Technologies. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices. For more information, call 973-824-6484, log onto or visit 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.