Paramedic Student Jessica Smith Wins Changing Tomorrow Award
At Centennial College, we help students on their way into the best version of their future, and we’re proud of their often award-winning accomplishments. The Ontario College Application Service (OCAS) is the creator of ontariocolleges.ca, every college hopeful’s invaluable resource. As part of OCAS’s 25th-anniversary celebrations, they created the Changing Tomorrow award, offering a lucky 25 Ontario students a $1,500 prize each.
To win, students had to submit a 500-word-max essay on "what your tomorrow looks like, and how a college education is going to help turn it into reality." One of those winners is Centennial College’s Jessica Smith, a Paramedic student.
Here’s an excerpt from her winning essay:
"My tomorrow looks like being at someone’s bedside as they stare death in the face. My tomorrow looks like ensuring the safety and well-being of those entrusted in my care. My tomorrow includes flashing lights, injuries, illness, and sleepless nights. But most important, my tomorrow offers the opportunity to provide someone else’s tomorrow. My tomorrow will be in the back of an ambulance, or helicopter, working as a paramedic."
When she was finally presented with her check for $1,000 ($500 was given as a bursary to go directly to her tuition), she was asked where she saw herself in five years. "In five years I want to have graduated from my Paramedic program and I want to be working for Ornge air ambulance service," she replied. With this bursary to help with her continuing education, she’s a little bit closer to her career.