Mt. Hood Community College programs help mother from India become a nurse

When Rajdeep Kaur grew up in Punjab, India in a loving family that belonged to the Sikh faith, she had no idea she would end up a single mother in Portland, Oregon. After an arranged marriage turned violent, Kaur fled to a shelter. But her perseverance eventually brought her to Mt. Hood Community College, where she has found support in the Transitions program and is on her way to becoming a nurse.

In Punjab, Kaur was considered an unusual girl because she loved math and science and wanted to enter the medical field. Her family frowned on the idea. She was expected to stay home, attend a girls’ school, marry and have children. Kaur persisted and was finally allowed to attend college, where she studied medical science. Her studies were interrupted by an arranged marriage, a typical event in Kaur’s religious and ethnic community.

She was initially excited to marry a successful Sikh and move to the U.S., where she hoped to continue her studies. Unfortunately, Kaur’s husband turned out to be a controlling, abusive man. In the U.S. she was kept in the home among her husband’s extended family, unable to make friends or learn the language.

When he became violent, she escaped to a domestic violence shelter with her young son. She was single, alone and unable to communicate in English, she had no job skills or even a driver’s license. Though her reality was grim, Kaur was determined to create an independent life. Within a year she had developed English fluency, earned a driver’s license, completed job training, rented an apartment and was working in a nursing home.

She took English as a Second Language classes at MHCC and then enrolled in a Career Pathways training program to become a certified nursing assistant. This program is specially designed for non-native English speakers, immigrants and refugees.

“This is a really wonderful place, I have so many instructors who are so nice,” she said. “They always encourage me — that’s why I started taking more and more classes.”

After completing the nursing assistant training, Kaur discovered the Transitions program, which helps single parents, displaced homemakers or women who speak English as a second language develop a comprehensive career plan and learn how to be successful in college. It also provides emotional support and helps students make friends as they “transition” into college life.

“I wish everyone could attend that class,” said Kaur. “They are so helpful; they told me about so many scholarship programs.”

One of those scholarships was the Ford Opportunity Scholarship from Oregon’s Ford Family Foundation. A cheerful and academically successful student, Kaur earned the scholarship, which will help pay for school, childcare and other expenses while she pursues her goal of becoming a nurse.

While Kaur misses India, she plans to remain in the U.S. where she feels she will have more opportunities as a woman and single mother to achieve her goals.

“I am very grateful for my life in Oregon,” Kaur says. “I will put my scholarship to good use and work hard to serve my new chosen community.”

For more information about the Transitions program, call 503-491-7680 or visit www.mhcc.edu/transitions. For information about setting up a scholarship, contact the MHCC Foundation at 503-491-7204.