Crafton Hills College recognizes ‘hard-working’ Paramedic Class 90

Publish Date: Dec. 10, 2018

CHC Paramedic Class 90 graduated on Friday, Dec. 7 in the Performing Arts Center.
Photo credit: Stanley Fry

Dedicated, smart, supportive, compassionate and hard-working are adjectives Kathryn Crow used to describe Crafton Hills College’s most recent class of paramedics.

Composed of 20 graduates, CHC’s 90th Paramedic Class was honored in the college’s Performing Arts Center (PAC) on Friday, Dec. 7, with Crow delivering remarks capturing the group’s personality.

“Each of them possessed different strengths,” said the director of paramedic education during the ceremony. “Some were quiet while some were outspoken. Some were happy to take on new leadership while others preferred to avoid the spotlight.

“But as the program progressed and became more difficult, they each discovered they possessed the opposite characteristics as well. All of this led to their ability as a group to support each other through the process,” she said.

Crafton’s paramedic program is made up of three parts known as didactic – a section composed of lectures, interactive presentations, labs and simulations – clinical training, and a field internship to expose trainees to hands-on, real-world experiences in the industry.

The paramedics program is offered twice a year in the fall and spring semesters, with students spending hundreds of hours in- and-out of the classroom to complete coursework requirements. And although each paramedic class is different, it is Crow’s hope each group puts what they learned to good use in not only their desired career field, but their personal lives as well.

Circling back to those descriptive adjectives, Crow said they all will be “important attributes” for each grad to keep in mind as they move forward to making their goals a reality.

“They will need to learn to reconcile the worst they see in humanity while also feeling blessed by the inherent good in people,” she said “They will need to balance being an employee with being a spouse or parent. They will be asked to help others in need while leaving their families behind.

“As they have proven time and time again, this group of young men can do that,” Crow continued. “As the industry shifts from one where showing emotion is often viewed as a weakness to one where we provide compassion to not only patients but to each other, they are well positioned to lead that change.”

Additional ceremony highlights included remarks from Michael Strong, Crafton’s vice president of administrative services, the presentation of individual awards and the passing out of certificates of completion.

To learn more about the program, go to www.craftonhills.edu. 

Paramedics Class 90 Graduates

Vincent Alvarez, Matthew Baldwin, Steven Botello, Nick Carlson, Ernest Cervantes, John Cota, Jovan Fierro, James Fowler, Silvester Gonzalez, Trevor Hanlon, Bryan Lee, Ryan Lopez, Nolan Newkirk, Alberto Paz, Logan Perry, Brandon Riggans, Troy Schnieder, Aaron Vrana, Garrett Webb, Jacob Williams