We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nurse Ebony Shene’. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nurse Ebony below.

Hi Nurse Ebony , thanks for joining us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea?

My name is Nurse Ebony Shene’. I have been a nurse for more than 20 years. Before I ever knew that I would go into the healthcare education business for myself, I played a very critical role as Licensed Nursing Home Administrator. Tasked with the day to day operations of a 248 bed nursing faciltiy, I was determined to change the climate and the culture of my facility. It was my very first non nursing leadship role of its kind and my responsibilties were many. I did things like budget expenses, oversee the billing for residents and families, manage relationships with our community partners, communicate financial updates with the owner/operators, oversee payroll protocols and the list goes on. Most importantly, I did it well with relatively no formal training. Seems I am in that same position within my own business now. I think I’m doing pretty well with no former training.

During my tenure with the facility that I managed, we saw great success as a team but there was just this one thing that I felt I could do more about. And that was educate and uplift more. I saw a lot of right but I also saw my share of wrong. I decided that I would open my own healthcare training school to help others gain a career in healthcare in order to open more doors for their future. In 2014, I found out that students entering their prospective nursing programs would be required to have their CNA certification. In 2015, I stayed a week in a hotel away from my family to obtain my certification to train CNA’s. In 2016, I filed for legal entity for my business, Scott School of Careers. Now thats idea to execution.

One of my most favorite motivational speakers Eric Thomas once said, “when you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you’ll be successful.”

It took every waking breath to lead that facility through the wins and in the process, it set me up to walk away from my job to run my own business. I vow to put every waking breath into making it successful.

Nurse Ebony , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I honestly believe that I am a Nurse Extraordinaire. I love all things nursing and I do all things nursing. I love my profession so much that I branded it with my nursinf apparel line, My Nurse Design. I have been in the healthcare field since the age of 16. As a young girl my granny worked as a certified nurses assistant, she was so beautiful. She took so much pride in her job. I remember watching her prepare for work. She was always so well put together. White Curls, white uniform, white hose, and white shoes. My granny inspired me. She was fiery yet caring. She didn’t retire from her CNA job until her 70’s. Gone too soon, I reminence about the times I sat at her bedside advocating on her behalf and making my peace with the fact that she was living out her last moments. I will continue in her legacy. My work is deeply rooted in caring and the care of others. Educating my students and creating employment opportunities for their continued growth is my form of community caring.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

After waiting over a year for an approval to operate my business, in 2018 the genesis location, Scott School of Careers Markham, IL was birthed. We currently offer Certified Nursing Assistant, Phlebotomy, Pharmacy Technician, and Sterile Technician courses. Shortly therafter, a second location was added. Scott school of Careers-West, located in the Austin community on Chicago’s westside not only offfers all of the previously mention allied health careers but it is the site central to our newly added Practical Nursing Program. Over the course of just 4 short years, we have grown to 5 locations across Illinois and this is expected to grow. I almost gave up on getting started. I though that it was too much. I thought I was inadequate. Turns out, I am more than enough.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I can only share that I have never given up. I refuse to make excuses. In life, I have adjusted to the challenges that have come my way. I was married young and became a mom at 18. My sons father was killed, when our son was only 4. Our son is one of my most prized possessions. He is smart, confident, and thriving. His father is more than proud. I wish I could say that I’ve gotten it right but life truly ain’t been no crystal stair. I tried my hand at marriage again and on the brinks of my career and the start of my business, we divorced. My try at love failed again but again I did not give up. I do not regret. I count it all joy and thank God for the lessons that I have been fortunate to learn. My children are healthy, I am a fulltime nurse entrepreneur, and I know that God is not finished with me yet.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ssccareers.org
• Instagram: @nurseebonyshene
• Facebook: Nurse Ebony Shene’
• Linkedin: Ebony Scott

Image Credits
Carey Fine D’sign and Borders