In August 2008, Paulette was referred to the Syracuse EOC ATTAIN Lab by her Jobsplus! case worker.
“I was almost done with my Highschool equivalency program and I was looking forward trying to figure out my next step,” says Paulette, a thirty-something mother of three. “I’d seen some of the other options out there and hadn’t found a place that met my needs.”
“My goals were to learn some basics about the computer. I would see my sons using it at home, but when I would ask them what they were doing, they would get frustrated with me real quick because I just didn’t know what they were talking about. And I knew I needed to catch up! Not only so that I would know what my kids were doing, but because I also new that I would need computer skills to take that next step in my career goals. You have to have those skills to do anything nowadays!”
“When I started the Digital Literacy program, I realized that there was so much more! It drew me into what I had been missing all along. I found the lessons on Internet Security to be the most interesting. The internet is a great thing, but you have to protect yourself. And the section on Productivity Programs showed me how I can use Excel to track my personal expenses and create a budget. I thought programs like that were just for businesses to use.”
After I finished Digital Literacy and passed the exam, I was so proud! Now I can’t get enough of the computer! My son says I am turning into a ‘computer nerd.’ I’m thinking that I want to get into a job involving Customer Support, so I’ve enrolled in some more computer classes at the EOC. It’s funny, because I want to help people fix things that I didn’t even know existed two months ago!”
“When I first came into the lab, I have to say that I was nervous. I was worried that Amanda, the Lab Manager, wouldn’t understand just how much I needed to learn! But she made it a very comfortable learning environment by being so patient, positive, and supportive. If the ATTAIN Lab wasn’t there, then I would have missed out on so much! I’m so thankful that it was there for me.”