Employee Scholarship Program helping Xavier Ard reach career goals

Xavier Ard has big plans for his future—but big plans often come with a big price tag. Lucky for Xavier he recently got a little help to cover the tab thanks to financial assistance through PMMA’s Employee Scholarship program.

“As it turns out, one of the biggest issues with getting an education is you have to pay for it—it’s not cheap,” said Xavier. “Ideally I’m hoping to get through as much as I can without taking out loans. So, any education assistance I can get is beneficial to me, and it’s beneficial to the Manor—the more people there are in the medical field, the easier it makes everyone’s life.”

While Xavier serves the community in a dual role of administrative assistant and cook, he is currently in his second semester of nursing school at Emporia State where he is on course to graduate with a Bachelor of Science in nursing.

“Ultimately, I plan get my CRNA [certified registered nurse anesthesiologist],” said Xavier. “I enjoy surgery and initially, when I first started school, I was studying to be a surgeon. But med school is expensive and a lot of your doctoring in medicine these days is just red tape, and I wasn’t interested in that.”

Between work and the demands of school, Xavier has little time for anything else.

“What free time I have I spend reading, sleeping and eating—but there’s not a whole lot of free time to go around,” said Xavier. “The way I look at it, the time I spend at work is my free time. I get to work with the residents, I get to cook and I get paid.”

The support he has received through the Employee Scholarship program, is just one more reason Xavier is grateful to be a member of the staff at Emporia Presbyterian Manor.

“I’m very thankful that PMMA has given me this award,” said Xavier. “It’s very helpful and I appreciate it greatly.”

To learn more about the PMMA Employee Scholarship program, and how you can contribute, visit giving.presbyterianmanors.org/education-scholarships. The Employee Scholarship Program is designed to assist employees in reaching their education and career goals.

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