Angela’s Set for Success

“So I’m sitting in Shannon’s cubicle and noticed some posters about these boot camps. They are 3 months of full-time schooling with an internship at a company that may hire you on when you graduate.” Seeing those posters changed Angela’s life. After years of searching for the perfect job, she finally has the career she’s always wanted – and the family-time she needs to be a great mom.

Angela had always worked part-time, so she could spend time at home raising her sons. After a rough divorce, she was determined to establish her independence and improve their lives. A friend told her about the help she could get from Wisconsin Works. That’s when she started building the strength she needed to succeed. She got Emergency Assistance and a Job Access Loan to help cover rent, and she started taking classes to learn how to improve her job search. She started several jobs, but they weren’t what she was looking for in a career.

“I told Shannon and Maureen that it was time for me to look at a different career field,” she says. That’s when she noticed the posters on her case manager Shannon’s wall. They gave her information about the training, and she noticed that one was for CNC operators. She asked her eldest son if she could shadow him for a day, and that’s when she realized that “Yeah, this was my thing!”

While she was waiting for training to begin, she made the most of her resources at FSC. She volunteered at the front desk for an experience she could add to her resume and “took classes online at Allison.com to get certificates that helped me be ready for school. . .  It was fun and I enjoyed working with all the people there. They work as a team and are always ready to help out whoever walks through that door.”

Once training started, her team set her up for success. “They were on top of things to make sure I got whatever I needed to be successful. I got gas vouchers to make it to interviews and school, I got help with my brakes on my car when they were failing and they helped me get work clothes and safety shoes for my new job in a factory.”

Angela got an internship at Mid-States Aluminum and was hired on by the company after a two-week test period. “I was like, Finally, financial stability for my boys and me!” she beams. “I’ve been working 3rd for 3 weeks now and I love it. It works out better for my boys because I get to spend so much more quality time with them.” She is currently living in “a beautiful country home” and feels great knowing that she has opportunities for promotion. She’s even going back to school this fall. “I am going to further my career by going to school at MPTC for Process Engineering.”

Congratulations, Angela! We’re so glad you’re in a career you love.