Franklin Torres Santos goes from HealthX to HealthWorks, Earning a CNA Certification on the Path to Registered Nurse

Building a foundation for a career in nursing

Franklin Torres Santos, a recent graduate of Making Waves Academy in Richmond, California, completed Ridgeline’s five-month HealthX Fellowship in partnership with Kaiser Permanente School of Allied Health Sciences this past spring. Through the fellowship, he explored in-demand healthcare careers, gained hands-on experience alongside mentors, and earned his Basic Life Support, or BLS, certification.

Gaining clinical experience and entry-level certification through HealthWorks 

Franklin took the next step toward his nursing career as one of 25 young people in the first cohort of Ridgeline’s new HealthWorks: CNA Program. 

"I want to be a nurse in the future, and this opportunity came up," Franklin shared. "I was like, 'I gotta do this. I just gotta go for it.'"

Over the summer, Franklin completed more than 100 hours of clinical training and 60 hours of classroom instruction through Northern California Nursing Academy. He also received durable skill reflections from Hidden Skills and interview preparation and career coaching from Ridgeline. Having completed the program, he is now preparing to take the California State CNA exam.

“I definitely plan on working as a CNA so that I have experience for when I become a registered nurse later on," shared Franklin, who is starting at Contra Costa College this fall to pursue a Registered Nursing program.

Making healthcare careers accessible across the Bay Area

For Franklin, being able to participate in HealthWorks and earn his CNA certification at no cost made all the difference in reaching his healthcare career goals.

“I’d definitely have doubts about taking this program if it wasn’t expense-free,” he said. “I’m just very grateful I got to do this without paying anything.”

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