Tonia Thomas was enrolled into Schenectady County Community College's Bridge Program on October 2, 2002. In the two years since then many things have changed for Tonia. She has come in and out of the Bridge Program and we have seen her both suffer setbacks and achieve great success.

Over the course of her involvement with Bridge, Tonia has utilized many services offered by SCCC's program including GED classes, Job Readiness Training, Life Skills Instruction and Job Development and Placement Assistance. After much hard work we are happy to say that Tonia successfully obtained her GED on May 7, 2004. We are delighted that she accepted a salaried position with the Schenectady City School District in September and has been working 30 hours per week as a Paraprofessional for the 1st grade. We are also very proud that she has enrolled at SCCC and is currently taking three classes while still balancing a demanding job and the responsibilities of being a mother.

In the past two years, we have seen Tonia not only rise to face the challenges that have confronted her but we have seen her do so with enthusiasm, a sense of duty and an unwillingness to be satisfied with anything less than the best from herself and her family. We know that no matter what comes her way, Tonia will succeed; Tonia knows that the Bridge Program will be there for her to help her reach that success.