AGE: 24
CAREER PATH: Early childhood education
Montserath was feeling lost. She didn’t qualify for FAFSA, which meant she couldn’t see a way to attend college, and she applied for more than forty different jobs, enduring long waiting periods only to face rejection after rejection.
“To be young and feel like you’re starting from zero at every application and making no progress takes a toll,” she shares. “However, I had hope in me; I knew there was more I could offer to my family and the city alike. I knew I had potential, drive, and the will to put in the work.”
Fortunately, a friend of hers had recently achieved her dream of becoming a medical assistant thanks to Youth Job Center, and she recommended Montserath reach out to create a success story of her own. “It took a brave morning” to make the call—a courageous step that she’s now immensely grateful to have taken.
After becoming a YJC client, Montserath went through workforce readiness training (where she learned core skills like time management, resume-building, and interviewing skills), enrolled in the career pathways program, and signed up for one-on-one career coaching. Having a career coach was a powerful experience for Montserath. “It's a wonderful feeling knowing they are…investing in the project that is you,” she says.
It was during this process that Montserath realized that what she had previously considered an unattainable dream—working in early childhood education—was actually an achievable goal. Through YJC, she participated in a paid work experience at a daycare center, which she describes as “meeting my destined career.” She relished “slowly building a relationship of mutual trust with the children and seeing them grow with the time, attention, and laughter shared.”
After the paid work experience, which she absolutely loved, the YJC team helped Montserath access funding to pursue her education. She is now in the process of obtaining her AAS degree in childhood development.
Once Montserath was reconnected to and actively pursuing her passion, her friends and loved ones could see the difference in her face, her energy. “You found it,” they said. “You found not just your resources and your tools; you found your career.”
A message from Montserath:
I want to say a special appreciation to my family. Before I could even have the courage to make that first call to YJC, I knew I was going to need special support and understanding from my family.
Thank you to my father for the sacrifices he made when entering the country to ensure a better future for his daughters. His great care since we were born has been inherited to me, to pass on that same care and support to the children in the world through a job in the education field.
Thank you to my sister, who, without her, I wouldn't know what would be of me. She—a strong hardworking young woman, my role model—has provided immeasurable support in my dream of becoming a teacher/teacher assistant.
Lastly, thank you to my YJC family for all the support and time you've invested to make all this possible.
Thank you for the opportunity to be featured as your client of the month! Every time I’ve seen all the people you’ve helped, I would say to myself, One day I will be on that list, one day I will be a success story myself, and my day has come!
I hope I made you all proud! Thank you all for believing in me!
