From Barista to Healthcare Professional What donor support makes possible
Nicole Boyd didn’t come to Olympic College with a master plan. She came with questions.
For years, she worked in cafes and bars. Great at connecting with people, but unsure where she was headed. After moving back to Washington from New Orleans, she took a chance and enrolled at Olympic College, even though she hadn’t been in a classroom in more than 20 years.
Something unexpected happened in her very first quarter:
“I realized I actually love learning.”
That realization changed everything.
With encouragement from her brother, a nurse, Nicole began exploring healthcare. She discovered the Diagnostic Medical Sonography program, one of the new programs launched through Olympic College’s Healthcare Expansion and found a path that finally felt right.
Today, Nicole is part of the inaugural sonography cohort, learning in newly renovated labs with state-of-the-art equipment at the Poulsbo campus. But this expansion isn’t just about buildings or technology.
To Nicole, it represents opportunity.
“This is an opportunity for students like me who took a leap into something completely different and for the future of healthcare in our community.”
Her years in the service industry turned out to be an asset: staying calm under pressure, paying attention to detail, making people feel at ease, skills that matter deeply in healthcare.
On day one, her cohort defined its culture in three words: respect, collaboration and compassion. They aren’t just students. They’re helping build a program and a workforce that Kitsap County will rely on for years to come.
At the Poulsbo Healthcare Expansion ribbon-cutting, Nicole stood at the podium and said it plainly:
“We’re not just opening programs. We’re opening doors to discovery, to compassion, and to the future of healthcare.”
That future exists because donors chose to invest.
During Kitsap Great Give, your support opens doors for students like Nicole and for the health of our entire community.
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Giving Activity
Mission
We transform lives by partnering with the community to support Olympic College and its students.
Needs
We help Olympic College students transform their lives through education.
Organization Data
Summary
Organization name
Olympic College Foundation
Tax id (EIN)
91-1595274
Categories
Human Services, Education, Community Improvement
Geography Served
Bremerton, Gig Harbor, Poulsbo/North Kitsap, Port Orchard/South Kitsap, North Mason, Bainbridge Island
Annual Revenue
$500,000 - $1,999,999
BIPOC Leadership
Board Members
BIPOC Serving
African American/Black, Asian or Asian American, Hispanic, Latino or Latinx, Middle Eastern or North African, Native American or American Indian, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, Multiracial