Where are they now? Deer Lakes' Ashley Ondich

If there’s one thing Ashley Ondich wants Beattie students to know, it’s that hard work and the right mindset will lead to endless opportunities. 

Also, she said, there is no set path that leads to success. 

Ashley graduated in 2010 and took prerequisite classes at CCAC to pursue a healthcare career, but life circumstances changed her plans. She chose to focus solely on her already burgeoning career instead of continuing to pursue a degree. 

Fast forward 12 years later, and Ashley is now a practice manager with 30 employees, including registered nurses and clinical operations specialists who report to her across four primary care offices. In between, she was a patient care technician, a clinical assistant, operations specialist, and a practice coordinator. 

“Through hard work and dedication, I was able to progress through many career ladder opportunities UPMC had to offer, which then led me to promotional opportunities to my current position as a practice manager,” Ashley said. 

She credited her time in what was then the Career Center’s Health Science Technology program with preparing her for the workforce. 

“The hands-on clinical experience for not only nursing assisting but medical assistant and intro into nursing was a great experience to help me pursue my career into healthcare,” Ashley said. “Because of my experience at Beattie, I interviewed with UPMC and was offered a job with UPMC before I had my diploma and graduated. Beattie provided me with career readiness skills I needed to succeed. Being at Beattie taught me not only the education and clinical resources I needed but also the professionalism aspect I needed to succeed in the workforce.” 

Ashley spoke to our second and third-year students in the Health and Nursing program in the spring. 

“I also was able to connect with them through my history at Beattie and share with them how it helped me succeed in my career with UPMC,” she said. “I was able to share the career ladder and promotional opportunities with the students that UPMC has to offer and speak on the tuition assistance offered if college courses were something they wished to pursue and still be able to work while doing so. The rewarding feeling of helping others and having continued success is like no other!”