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Becoming a nurse takes discipline, persistence, hard work, lots of studying,
patience and love. Latonya Green should be the poster child for what it takes
to become a nurse. Her life is not one for the weak and lazy. In fact, her life
is one that not many strong and motivated people could handle either.
The above reference to needing love is about having people around that support
your desire to become a nurse, even when you are feeling overwhelmed and tired.
After a really hard day, Latonya came home and was ready to give it all up,
but her husband, Earnest, told her, “Quitting is not an option.” Latonya
attributes her success to her husband — he cooks, he cleans and he takes
their son to school!
Latonya Green is not a recent high school graduate. She worked for Prudential
Insurance for fourteen years as a file clerk, and then was promoted to shift
manager, making very good money. She wasn’t particularly happy at the job,
but she could not have replaced her pay level in Jacksonville without getting
a college degree. She was earning more than $70,000 a year due to the skills
she learned at Prudential, but these skills were not transferable to other jobs
in the area. Everything changed for Latonya when her job was relocated to another
state and she decided not to move.
At this point in her life, Latonya thought about going to college. She didn’t
go to college right after high school because she wasn’t interested at
that time, so she went to work instead. Latonya’s husband encouraged her
to go back to school and get her degree. So she signed up at FCCJ and got her
AA Degree while working full time.
Earnest started running the house at that time. He takes care of their six-year-old
son, Micah. Latonya and Earnest also have a nineteen-year-old son, Ayaree, who
is in the Air Force and stationed in Korea. Latonya graduated from FCCJ on May
5 and began classes at UNF on May 8. She is working on her BSN in nursing.
The transition has been a challenge for Latonya. While at FCCJ, she took two
to three classes at a time; whereas at UNF, she is taking a full load. According
to Latonya, “First semester was a struggle. Once you get through the first
semester you can make it.” Once you see Latonya’s weekly schedule,
you will understand why the full-time nursing school and part time work schedule
can be a struggle.
A week in the life of LaTonya
Monday – Classes
Tuesday – Clinicals*
Wednesday – Study Day
Thursday - Classes
Friday – Classes (she stops studying at 7:00 p.m.)
Saturday – Work at Shands
Sunday – Work at Shands
* Clinicals are hands-on experiences in classroom labs or patient care environments.
Latonya has amazing enthusiasm and energy, despite all her hard work. She says,
“My day starts at 3:00 a.m., Monday through Friday, and I have a daily
devotion as my spirituality is very important to me.”
As you can imagine, Latonya’s advice to others about taking on the challenge
of becoming a nurse is that “if you’re not afraid of hard work, then
you can do it.”
When Latonya was asked about pay levels of starting nurses, she didn’t
know the answer. After being so focused on pay at Prudential, it was hard to
believe she didn’t care about replacing the income she had before. Her
reply was, “I haven’t even looked at pay levels — I just love
the work so much.” One of her instructors summed it up perfectly: Nursing
is an emotional paycheck. She said she sees limitless opportunity as she has
enjoyed all of her clinical rotations. The one thing Latonya has decided is
she does not want to work nights.
Latonya enjoys working at Shands. She likes the family atmosphere and will
probably stay there after completing her degree. The Graduate Nurse Program
is a strong attraction for LaTonya. Shands implemented this program for senior
level nursing students. It gives them the opportunity to work in the hospital
and get the training and experience that will help them transition successfully
into a full time nurse once they graduate.
Latonya has one and a half years until she graduates. She has been working
weekends for two years already and her husband has told her “quitting is
not an option” so it’s a safe bet Latonya will be a nurse soon. Thank
you Earnest-–we need her!