Every challenge is an opportunity to excel for Shamond Curtis Jr., BSN, RN, CCRN-CMC.
In just five years, Curtis worked his way up the nursing ladder by taking advantage of multiple UAB Medicine educational assistance programs while working full time. However, a career in healthcare wasn’t always his plan.
Curtis joined the U.S. Navy after graduating from college, hoping to serve his country. But after being discharged during boot camp, he had to pivot. That’s when he turned to nursing – even though it meant starting at square one.
“My mom’s been a nurse for the majority of my life, so she was talking me into trying to do it for a long time,” Curtis said. “Getting the opportunity to have an impact on people is my motivation, so shifting to nursing has been the best thing for me.”
Creating opportunities
Curtis joined UAB Hospital as a patient care technician (PCT) in September 2020, a challenging time for the healthcare industry. While hospitals across the country were losing nurses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UAB Medicine sought to build stability in its workforce.
As part of that effort, UAB Medicine partnered with Wallace State Community College (WSCC) to develop the UAB/WSCC Nursing Workforce Initiative. This scholarship program created a new pathway for full-time, benefit-eligible employees to advance their careers. By enrolling at WSCC, they can earn their licensed practical nurse (LPN) certificate while UAB Medicine covers tuition.
“We lost a lot of nurses during COVID for a lot of reasons, but we saw this as an opportunity to help our great staff who wanted to become licensed nurses but needed support to reach that next level of licensure,” said UAB Health System Chief Nursing Executive Terri Poe, DNP, RN.
Nursing Program Development Director Aaryn Levert-Kidd says the initiative was designed to create opportunities for employees who already demonstrate dedication, compassion, and potential within the organization.
“By removing financial barriers and building clear educational pathways for our UAB Medicine employees, we’re able to invest in our current workforce while helping staff achieve long-term professional and personal goals,” Levert-Kidd said.
A bigger idea
Curtis heard about the program in October 2021 and was among the first to enroll. After three semesters of hard work, he earned his LPN certificate. But he had a bigger idea.
“Shortly after that, he and a colleague came back to us and asked if we would pay for them to take two more semesters and earn their associate’s degrees,” Poe said. “The truth is that we’d never considered it. But then we thought, why in the world would we not want to do that?”
Nine months later, Curtis and his colleague became registered nurses (RNs), opening the door for others to follow in their footsteps.
“It’s thanks to them that we extended it from just an LPN program to an RN program, which we’ve now graduated a lot of people from,” Poe said.
However, Curtis still wasn’t done. Taking advantage of another free tuition benefit, he went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from the UAB School of Nursing.
“It’s been great for my family,” Curtis said. “I’m a husband and a dad now, so being able to take care of my family has been a big deal.”
Pathways to success
UAB Medicine’s tuition assistance and career advancement programs have since been expanded, giving eligible employees even more opportunities to become an LPN or RN. And through the national Reach for the Stars nursing scholarship program, UAB Medicine also supports staff working in part-time and flexible roles who are interested in pursuing an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in nursing.
“We are seeing multiple avenues to support nurses who are already in our system, which is exactly what we started trying to do with the inaugural group that Shamond was a part of several years ago,” Poe said. “I think the sky’s the limit with these programs.”
Today, Curtis is an RN in the Cardiac Care Unit at UAB Hospital and is planning to pursue postgraduate education at UAB.
“His trajectory in five years is amazing,” Poe said. “He’s motivated me to make a difference for more people and to reach out and touch the next Shamond. I believe that if we made this impact for him, we can grow it across the whole health system.”
Looking back, Curtis says he’s proud of his persistence and recognizes that great things come from overcoming challenges.
“If you want something bad enough, you’ll make it happen, and you get great support here throughout the entire process,” Curtis said. “If you’re willing to work, UAB definitely will help you out.”
Learn about nursing career pathways at UAB Medicine and search for open jobs.