Hillary Josefsberg is my name and it is my privilege to state that I am a LaGuardia Community College Nursing alumnus.

Welcome to my Capstone ePortfolio!

     Owing to the downturn in the economy that began at the end of 2008, the bank at which I was employed for five years strategically deployed a maneuver insiders [with tongue in cheek] lovingly refered to as “Natural Attrition”.  Across the spectrum of the banking industry, financial institutions reduced payroll rosters by implemennting massive lay-offs.  Departments were restructured to operate at skeletal levels with the target result of conservation of capital at the cost of human collateral.  In the aftermath of the carnage I found myself cut loose from my Administrative Assistant position, cast adrift on a turbulent sea of uncertainty as collateral damage; a statistical footnote of “Natural Attrition”.

     My job description in the corporate world was defined as Executive Administrative Assistant.  However, with the advent of [and advances in] technology, corporate institutions were systematically phasing out my function.  Owing directly to the proliferation of technology in the corporate setting, a vast array of businesses eliminated the function of administrative support personnel altogether.  It became apparent that my function in the corporate world was fast becoming obsolete.  Caught up in the nightmare of confusion that was defining the economic collapse of the new millennium, I found myself unemployed, unremarkable, uninsured and basically unmarketable in the economic climate that defined the time.  Reality dispelled all my illusions.  Having spent the majority of my working career as support staff for major financial institutions, I was at a loss for what to do next.  Necessity presented the impetus to investigate new directions. 

     Faced with the bowl of lemons that life had so graciously handed me, I decided to roll up my sleeves, get some sugar and make lemonade!  I chose to actively pursue career advancement opportunities through education in the health sciences.  A conscious decision was made to view my situation as a golden opportunity; the chance of a lifetime.  Covering the span of my adult life I had harbored an ever present, smoldering desire to achieve a formal college education.  It was now or never to put my thoughts and desires into action and choose to do something about it!  To quote Florence Nightingale: “Were there none who were discontented with what they have, the world would never reach anything better.”

     Although my life has been enriched by friends, family, unique experiences and incomparable employment opportunities, I had always felt educationally lacking, in constant search to expand my intellectual horizons.  To that end, I have evolved to prize books and reading above chocolate and gold [yes… in that order!].  I decided to begin my educational journey at LaGuardia Community College and turn my dream into reality.  Here, within the walls of this institution, I kindled a desire to pursue my craving for knowledge.  LaGuardia Community College offered an educational scaffold from which I chose to assemble a sturdy foundation in math, psychology and science.  Within myself, I found the strength to mount the perfect purchase from which to construct an opportunity to reinvent myself.  Right from the inception of my academic journey, CUNY awakened in me an unbridled passion for learning and a newfound joy in educational pursuit.

     I chose to aggressively pursue the possibilities of a career in the burgeoning field of Registered Nursing.  Before committing to this path, due diligence was performed, several career opportunities attainable through education were investigated.  Nursing offered the most diversity.  After achieving excellent grades in my pre-clinical studies, I was ecstatic to learn that I was to be accorded a coveted seat in LaGuardia Community College’s Associate Degree Nurse Program.  During my exposure to nursing education, I not only developed an unbridled passion for the academic life, but I also discovered a love for the nursing profession and an overwhelming desire to follow my heart and travel in this direction.