Becoming a respiratory therapist wasn’t this Scholar’s first career plan. But her grit and tenacity were always going to take her places.
“You just kind of have to lock in and do it because you know it’s temporary,” said Delania C. about how she balanced full-time service work while pursuing her degree to achieve her goal of working in healthcare.
Delania, now an Avenue Scholars Alum, first discovered her passion for healthcare at her grandmother’s bedside.
Her grandmother had suffered a stroke, and Delania became one of her primary caregivers.
“That’s kind of what got me into the medical field,” Delania said, “because I liked being there bedside.”
Now, Delania is pursuing that interest in patient care as a respiratory therapist associate at Nebraska Medicine. With this new position, Delania recently became an Avenue Scholars Alum. Scholars reach Alumni status when they obtain a full-time role that provides a self-sustaining wage and benefits in a high-demand field.
Finding Her Pathway and Community
Delania started with Avenue Scholars as a junior at Papillion La Vista High School after being introduced to the program by her mother. Delania joined a class with 18 other students, learning essential workplace interpersonal skills, and discovering what career pathways interested her most.
“We loved it,” Delania said about the class. “Our whole group still keeps in touch. We meet up every so often, and we have food nights, or movie nights … It’s a good group.”
Her experience with her grandmother led her to pursue her certified nursing assistant (CNA) certification, which, with the help of Avenue Scholars, she earned while still in high school.
Delania worked at a nursing home for more than a year caring for residents with dementia as she pursued nursing prerequisite courses at Metropolitan Community College (MCC).
Her Avenue Scholars High School Coach eventually suggested she explore a more niche area within healthcare — respiratory therapy. Delania said she liked the idea of having a specific area of expertise, so she applied and was accepted into the respiratory therapy program at MCC.
Balancing School and Work
With a more specialized degree and healthcare role ahead, it meant more demanding study time and class hours. Delania worked at Cheddar’s as a server full-time for most of her time at MCC, as it offered late-night shifts so she could attend her daytime classes and support herself.
“It was definitely a lot. I’m not going to lie — it was exhausting,” Delania said. “There were nights I wouldn’t get home until 11 or midnight, and then I’d have to wake right back up to look over my notes before an 8 a.m. clinicals or lecture at Metro. You just kind of have to lock in and do it because you know it’s temporary.”
In December 2025, Delania faced a health issue of her own and needed surgery. When she told her Coach, Avenue Scholars stepped in to provide some financial relief, paying a portion of her medical bills.
“That was actually really helpful,” Delania said. “At that point in time, I was already cutting even more hours, only working like 20 hours throughout the week because of school.”
Delania stepped right back into her classes and job just a week after surgery, not missing a beat. It’s a testament to her resilience and dedication, said her Career Services Coach, Tom Robertson.
“Every so often Tom will ask me for an update on school, ” Delania said. “I’ll give him an update, and every single time he’ll be like, ‘I’m very proud of you. You’ve worked really hard to get here.’ Very, very good guy. Very inspirational. I’ll look at my phone and I’ll be like, ‘Oh, that’s so sweet.’”
Delania recently graduated from MCC with an associate degree in respiratory therapy.
Looking Forward
Delania took the initiative to apply for a role at Nebraska Medicine as a respiratory therapist associate.
Delania knows Nebraska Medicine is a great place to gain the experience she needs early in her career.
“It’s a change of pace. I’ve worked in the healthcare setting before, but not a hospital setting — 12-hour shifts. None of that. But I’m excited. I’m ready,” she said.
Robertson knows Delania is prepared for the bright future ahead of her.
“Delania checks off every box when it comes to expectations I’ve had for her as her Coach,” he said. “She is an excellent communicator, lives beneath her means, stuck to her pathway even when the path was challenging, and has a solid plan for her future growth.”
