Meet Cassandra, One of Our Amazing Clients

Cassandra dropped out of high school, following in her sister’s footsteps. But a year later, Cassandra had earned her New Jersey high school diploma through NewBridge Jobs Plus — and so had her sister.

Months after giving birth to her son, Adrian, Cassandra learned she didn’t have enough credits to graduate from Lenape Valley Regional High School in June 2016. Within weeks, she enrolled in NewBridge’s successful alternative education program.

NewBridge helped her prepare for the New Jersey High School exam and then apply to Montclair State University, where she is now majoring in biology with a 3.1 grade point average.

“NewBridge gave me confidence in myself I didn’t know I had,” Cassandra said. Working part-time in a pediatrician’s office, the 19-year-old aspires to become an obstetrician or neonatal physician.

Cassandra’s experience inspired her older sister, Leilani, to enroll at NewBridge Jobs Plus. “I was really proud of her, and I thought, if she can do it while raising a child, why can’t I?” Leilani is now a freshman at County College of Morris studying criminal justice.

Their mom, Mirna, could not be prouder: “There has been a lot of pain in our family, but now I’m so hopeful for them, for their future,” she said.