STRIVE North Jersey Graduates 23 Medical Assistant Students, Expanding Healthcare Career Pathways in Newark

Twenty-three students crossed the stage at Newark Symphony Hall on July 24, marking the largest graduating class yet for STRIVE North Jersey’s Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CMA) program.

The graduates completed a tuition-free workforce training program designed to prepare Essex, Hudson and Union County residents for careers in healthcare while addressing barriers that can make it difficult to complete training and secure employment. Participants must have a high school diploma or GED.

For Donnell Hill, executive director of STRIVE North Jersey, the ceremony represented more than earning a credential.

“It’s a moment of celebration of not just hard work, but of people who have chosen to take the path less chosen,” Hill said. He described graduation as an opportunity for participants to recognize that “they’ve done something worth celebrating.”

The graduation comes as STRIVE North Jersey approaches its first year in Newark, where the organization is building a workforce program that combines career training, job placement, and support for residents facing employment barriers. Since launching in October 2025, the program has graduated 46 medical assistant students across three cohorts.

The July class was STRIVE North Jersey’s largest so far, with 23 graduates, which is the same number as its first two cohorts combined.

“It signifies the gradual growth and the gradual upscaling that we’ve all been able to do as a team, as an organization,” Hill said.

The ceremony featured keynote remarks from Glenn Best, workforce development director at Kaisen Technologies Inc.

The ceremony also brought additional financial support for the program. Michael Brooks, Executive Director of the Liberty National Foundation, pledged $50,000 to support STRIVE North Jersey’s programming, following an earlier $50,000 contribution from the foundation, according to Hill.

Building STRIVE in Newark

STRIVE is a national workforce development organization founded in East Harlem more than four decades ago. Its North Jersey location serves residents of Essex, Hudson and Union counties.

Hill said Newark was selected because it represents the population STRIVE aims to serve and provides a central location with access to transportation, resources, and community and industry partners.

“When you think of Jersey and just North Jersey, it’s the centralized hub,” Hill said. “There’s a lot of resources here, a lot of  transportation comes through here.”

Since opening, STRIVE North Jersey has served 59 students, about 90% of whom have been Newark residents, according to data provided by the organization.

STRIVE North Jersey reports a 50% job placement rate, which officials said is rising as the organization develops additional employer relationships. The program also reports a 90% certification exam pass rate, with retakes available to participants who do not pass on their first attempt.

Of the 23 students recognized on July 24, two had already secured jobs or job offers at the time STRIVE provided the data.

Preparing Students for Healthcare Careers

Healthcare is currently STRIVE North Jersey’s only active career pathway.

Amir Smith, employment specialist at STRIVE North Jersey, helps participants prepare to enter the workforce through résumé assistance, mock interviews, job searches and connections with employers.

Smith said STRIVE conducts labor market research before deciding which industries to enter and identified healthcare as a growing field in New Jersey.

“Our national team does a lot of labor market research,” Smith said, adding that healthcare offered “a good entry point for us to get started with.”

Medical assistants are listed among NJ’s in-demand occupations on the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development’s most recent demand occupations list, effective July 2025. The state reported 19,880 medical assistant jobs in 2023 and projects employment in the field to grow 17.8%. A postsecondary non-degree award is listed as the typical minimum education required to enter the occupation.

Students begin with three weeks of STRIVE’s career-readiness curriculum, where they work on professional communication, punctuality, interviewing, workplace behavior, and self-reflection.

One exercise, called “Stand and Deliver,” requires participants to speak in front of their classmates for five uninterrupted minutes about themselves.

The first three weeks culminate in what STRIVE calls a “Moving Up Ceremony,” where participants are recognized for completing the career-readiness portion of the program before advancing to occupational training.

After the ceremony, students enter seven weeks of occupational training in medical assisting, during which they develop the technical skills needed for the field. Combined with the initial three weeks of career readiness, the program lasts 10 weeks.

Participants take the National Healthcareer Association certification exam after completing the occupational training portion. Passing the exam is separate from graduating from STRIVE. Students can complete the program even if they need to retake the certification exam.

The healthcare pathway can lead participants to medical assistant and patient care technician positions, as well as other entry-level hospital roles.

Removing Barriers Beyond the Classroom

Hill described STRIVE’s approach as an “ecosystem,” designed around the idea that technical training alone may not be sufficient for participants facing challenges outside the classroom.

Before training begins, staff meet individually with prospective participants through what STRIVE calls a “Getting to Know You” session. Staff ask about potential barriers including transportation, housing, childcare and other needs that could interfere with completing the program.

“If we want people to be successful, we have to remove those barriers from them having success,” Hill said.

Participants can receive bus, PATH and light rail assistance, along with gas cards for those who drive. STRIVE also works with community organizations to connect students with resources for food, housing, childcare, mental health and other needs.

Smith said those challenges can make it difficult for participants to focus on finding work.

“It’s hard to focus on getting a job or prepping for a job interview when you know you’re hungry, or you’re having a housing struggle,” Smith said.

The support continues after graduation. Smith works with participants on applications, interviews and employer connections, including teaching graduates how to tailor their résumés to specific positions.

North Jersey graduates have been hired by Newark Community Health Center, CareWell Health, Atlantic Health, Overlook Medical Center, University Hospital and RWJBarnabas, according to STRIVE.

For graduates who do not immediately find work, Smith said STRIVE generally aims to help them secure employment within three to six months.

“What kind of separates us from other programs is it’s a lifetime support,” Smith said.

A Daughter Follows Her Father’s Path

For 22-year-old Newark resident Mi’Treasur Scott, STRIVE’s impact was already visible within her family before she enrolled.

Her father, Burchanti Scott, completed a STRIVE program in New York in June 2024 and went on to work as a hospital support worker.

Mi’Treasur said the experience helped her father establish a stable income to support his family while bringing more discipline and supportive people into his life.

By January 2026, she was looking for a change of her own.

Mi’Treasur had earned an associate degree in pre-social work and human services and completed internships serving her community, but she was working a retail job. She wanted something challenging that would also allow her to apply her social work skills in different ways.

When she told her father she wanted to “elevate” her life, she said he recommended STRIVE and encouraged her throughout the process.

Mi’Treasur enrolled in STRIVE North Jersey in January and graduated in April.

The experience was demanding, she said, and one of her greatest challenges was finding the motivation to continue when the training became difficult. But she was surprised by something else: the relationships she developed with the women in her class.

She also credited Ashley Shaw, STRIVE’s career coach, with making a lasting impression by understanding the students, meeting them where they were, and showing concern for their personal and educational needs.

Crossing the stage was a moment Mi’Treasur once had difficulty imagining for herself.

“I couldn’t believe I did it,” she said. “I told myself I would probably never do medical because it’s way too hard, and I proved it to myself.”

Her father was there “front and center.”

“It was surreal because just before then I was watching him graduate and give a speech at his graduation,” Mi’Treasur said. “Who would’ve thought I’d be speaking at my own two years later?”

About a month after graduating, she found a job and began working in early June as a podiatry assistant and personal assistant with Premier Health Medical Group.

She now travels between offices, participates in events, and meets new people through her work. Mi’Treasur said the position has also allowed her to combine her previous education with her healthcare training.

“I am now becoming more financially stable, doing something I am learning to love,” she said. “I am so happy because I can merge my associate’s degree with my CMA certificate.”

What Comes Next

STRIVE North Jersey is preparing for additional cohorts while planning to expand the number of residents it serves.

Hill said the North Jersey operation remains in its early stages, with plans to expand beyond its current healthcare training eventually.

“We’re just getting started,” Hill said. “We’re still in our infant phase.”

By next year, STRIVE North Jersey aims to serve 125 people and introduce either another career pathway or one of STRIVE’s other workforce programs. Those programs include Fresh Start, which supports people returning home from incarceration, and Future Leaders, which helps justice-involved young adults ages 18 to 24 develop skills to begin a career.

The next North Jersey cohort is scheduled to begin November 13, and recruitment is underway. Prospective participants can learn more on STRIVE North Jersey’s website and via its interest form.

Hill said he wants STRIVE North Jersey to become a resource that Newark-area residents share with others who may be looking for a new career or need help entering the workforce.

Residents can fill out the online interest form. Once submitted, prospective participants receive access to virtual information sessions held Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10 a.m.

For Hill, what happens after participants leave the stage remains as important as getting them there.

“It didn’t feel like the end,” Hill said of the July graduation. “It’s like the graduation to a whole new life.”

Mi’Treasur offered similar advice to people considering following that path.

“Do it and don’t wait,” she said. “It’s a no-lose situation for the person applying, and you can only gain from this experience. No matter how hard it gets, keep going because it will pay off.”