A hospital-based career college preparing our communities’ students
to excel in healthcare professions, and in life.

St. Francis Career College (SFCC) began as a single Vocational Nursing Class of 14 in 1988 and has grown to become a nationally accredited educational institution still operated by the reputable St. Francis Medical Center (SFMC). Today, the College has two campuses; Lynwood Main Campus and San Jose Branch which opened in September 2003.  In our current academic year 2010, approximately 500 students will be enrolled in the Career Training Division dedicated to preparing  promising students to succeed in healthcare professions by providing value-based education in an empowering and nurturing environment.  SFCC also coordinates a number of Career Advancement Programs enabling SFCC students, alumni, SFMC associates, and other prospective students the opportunity to pursue a Registered Nurse Associates Degree in collaboration with East Los Angeles College.    

SFCC’s Career Training Programs

Students enrolled in SFCC’s very unique Career Training Division typically face significant social, economic academic and psychological challenges in achieving their professional goals. Many come from unstable home lives including, life-long dependence on public assistance, gangs involvement, or poor academic records. The majority of SFCC students are minorities, bilingual and/or single parents who become first generation college graduates. Virtually all SFCC students depend on some form of financial aid to fund their education including scholarships, grants, loans and work-study assignments. 

SFCC’s challenging academic environment is complemented by Comprehensive Support Services that are in place to ensure that students succeed in their goal of becoming highly-skilled, sought-after healthcare professionals. These support services include the VICTORY Program—a remediation to improve academic performance; the Step-Up! Program designed to assist students in basic math tutorials and GED completions; social-psychological counseling and support; financial assistance for housing, food, transportation and childcare, as well as referral to needed social services. 

In academic year 2009, 490 students attended the Career Training programs on the SFCC Lynwood and San Jose Branch campuses:

• Nurse Assistant– This two month full-time certificate program prepares students to assist licensed healthcare personnel in delivering basic nursing care.
• Vocational Nurse – This 16-month full-time diploma program prepares students to provide direct patient care in the hospital, long-term care, and outpatient care settings.

Career Advancement Programs

SFCC coordinates the following Career Advancement Programs enabling SFCC students and other interested students the opportunity to pursue a Registered Nurse Associates Degree:

• The LVN-RN Program, coordinated and offered through East Los Angeles College (ELAC), gives Licensed Vocational Nurses who have completed their prerequisite and general education requirements, the opportunity to enroll in ELAC’s ADRN Program. Currently SFMC provides scholarships to those participants who make a 2-year employment commitment at SFMC.  This program is funded by the Health Resource and Services Administration, Department of Labor, and Daughters of Charity Foundation until 2010-2011.
• The Generic RN Program provides the opportunity for non-VN SFMC employees who have completed their prerequisite and general education requirements to enroll in ELAC’s ADRN Program. SFMC also provides scholarships to those participants who make a 2-year employment commitment at SFMC. 
• The High School to RN Program provides selected Lynwood Unified School District High School students the opportunity to complete general education and prerequisite course requirements in anticipation of admission into an ADRN Program.
  In addition, the majority of SFCC VN students are taking prerequisite courses simultaneously with their VN requirements.

SFCC Accreditation, Licensing, and Approving Agencies

• Accrediting Commission on Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC).
• California Department of Consumer Affairs – Veterans Administration Program
• California Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians (BVNPT).
• California Department of Health Services (DHS).
• California Department of Consumer Affairs
• U.S. Department of Education (Title IV Certification).

Our Local Communities

St. Francis Career College serves economically challenged urban communities in both the Los Angeles and San Jose areas.  The students of the SFCC main campus are drawn from communities in East, Southeast and Central Los Angeles, where 46% of children are living below the poverty level and 83% are low-income families living below 200% of the federal poverty level.  Unemployment rates in the communities served by SFCC exceed 10%, more than double the national rate.  Our graduates are employed throughout Los Angeles and Orange Counties, as well as Santa Clara County in Northern California.

Our unique educational strategy has enabled both campuses of SFCC to achieve the following 2009 statistics:

• 93% combined retention rate (92% Lynwood; 92% San Jose);
• 96% combined passing rate in written; 87% in skills on state certification examination for Certified Nurse Assistant Program [Lynwood: 99% written/93% skills; San Jose: 93% written/80% skills);
• 65% combined rate on state 2008 National Licensure Examination for Practical Nursing (NCLEX-PN) [64.36% Lynwood; 66.10% San Jose] with State of California Annual Pass Rate was 73%;
• 35% combined workforce placement rate for Career Training Program graduates – VN & NA (24% Lynwood; 45% San Jose).

For additional information, please contact:

Lynwood Main Campus:
Alice Campbell, MPH, RNP
Dean, Academic Achievement and Advisement
310.900.8050

San Jose Branch Campus:
Remy Panlilio, BSN, RN
Senior Associate Dean
408.286.8903