Five Apple Valley High School students become licensed CNAs

APPLE VALLEY, Calif.— Five Apple Valley High School students have passed their Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) State Licensing Exam. Seniors Payden Michael and Emma Kleinsmith and Juniors Angie Castelan, Hailey Garcia, and Gabriella Garibay can officially call themselves licensed CNAs.

The five students took the Certified Nursing Assistant course at Victor Valley College over the summer. The course consists of classroom instruction and clinical experience in extended care facilities. A course grade of a C or better is required to take the State Licensing Exam.

The California CNA exam is comprised of a written/oral written exam and a manual exam. Students must complete 70 questions in the written/oral written exam and they are tested on 5 skills in the manual exam. 

The cost of the course and the exam, normally, is about $700. Apple Valley Unified School District paid for the students’ class and exams through Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) funding. 

Stephanie Arredondo, the Medical and Health Science Technology (MAHST) Program Coordinator and teacher at AVHS, and Kevinz Carpio, one of AVHS’s MAHST teachers, are “extremely proud of these students for their time and dedication to make the future of healthcare bright.”

Payden Michael and Emma Kleinsmith will be doing CNA internships this year and all 5 students are currently applying for jobs in the healthcare field. 

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