Career Tips & Advice

Concorde Establishes National Advisory Board

Concorde Staff

Concorde Staff

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Updated November 14, 2017. The information contained in this blog is current and accurate as of this date.
health care training

"Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change." - Jim Rohn, American Business Philosopher

For many pursuing health care training, the catalyst often is that you needed a change in your life. A job left you unfulfilled, or a family depended on you. You are who you are today because you made a change.

We recognize and value the art of change at Concorde. It's why we've thrived for more than 50 years and why more than 100,000 alumni have prepared for rewarding careers in health care. It's also why we've been hard at work establishing our first-ever National Advisory Board this year.

Tightening health care training to stay ahead of the curve

The National Advisory Board is a dedicated group of internal Concorde partners and external affiliates that are committed to looking at health care from a global perspective and a proactive one, explained Nancy Jones, Concorde's Senior Director of Student Affairs.

"We're asking questions like - How can Concorde be ahead of trends and position itself to be a leader in health care training? How do we partner or identify with top employers, as an extension, to meet the needs of their workforce?" she said.

Joan Wiederspiel is President of Abbott & Associates and is also one of the Advisory Board's external members. Her firm has been connected to Concorde for many years, helping to place Medical Assistants and Medical Office Professionals in the upper northwest health care community.

Wiederspiel is encouraged and impressed with the focus and enthusiasm of the participants, even after only one Board meeting. She joined the Board to help offer timely feedback from clients, hiring managers and practices that she works within the recruiting industry.

"It's all about doing our best to produce graduates who meet the needs of the ever-changing landscape of hospitals and health care facilities across the country," said Wiederspiel.

Joining Wiederspiel are CEO of Associated Purchasing Services, Dennis George, and Barbie Vartanian, who leads the Pacific Dental Services Foundation.

Our internal committee members are: Jami Frazier, Concorde's Senior Vice President of Operations; Nancy L. Jones; Zane Wilson, Concorde - Portland's Director of Student Affairs; Jahmil Jones, Senior Director of Admissions from Concorde - Grand Prairie; Cindy Navarro, Dental Assisting Program Director at Concorde - Garden Grove; and Kellie Elliot, Concorde - Garden Grove's Dental Assisting Extern Coordinator.

The inertia of excellence

The Board expanded its focus, from electronic health records to concierge/telemedicine, to discuss the challenges and opportunities in the health care community at large and how Concorde could be proactive in evolving to meet those needs of health care training.

The Board continues to identify the right external nursing and legislative sector partners to join the Board and look forward to creating actionable plans that will allow Concorde to continue to be competitive in the immediate future.

"It's clear in my relationship with Concorde that they're really committed to career success," said Wiederspiel. "That doesn't happen at all schools. Concorde is really more than just an education."

Take The Next Step Towards a Brighter Future

We have a Concorde representative ready to talk about what matters most to you. Get answers about start dates, curriculum, financial aid, scholarships and more!

  1. Program length may be subject to change dependent on transfer credits and course load. Please refer to current course catalog for more information. Concorde does not guarantee admittance, graduation, subsequent employment or salary amount.

  2. Professional certification is not a requirement for graduation, may not be a requirement for employment nor does it guarantee employment.

  3. Financial aid is available to those who qualify but may not be available for all programs. Concorde does not guarantee financial aid or scholarship awards or amounts.

  4. Clinical hour requirements and delivery may vary by campus location and may be subject to change. Concorde does not guarantee clinical site assignments based upon student preference or geographic convenience; nor do clinical experiences guarantee graduation, post-clinical employment or salary outcomes.

  5. Registration and certification requirements for taking and passing these examinations are not controlled by Concorde, but by outside agencies, and are subject to change by the agency without notice. Therefore, Concorde cannot guarantee that graduates will be eligible to take these exams, at all or at any specific time, regardless of their eligibility status upon enrollment.

  6. Externships are a non-paid in-person learning experience, whose length and location may be subject to change. Concorde does not guarantee externship placement, graduation, post-externship employment or salary outcomes.