The Eleanor Network | Portrait of an Eleanor Woman: Nicole Achieves Success At Work

A network of resources to support economic self-sufficiency

Why Build the Eleanor Network?

We know that women's needs and opportunities go beyond the capacity and experience of any single organization. That's why we work closely with our grantee partners to restructure programs that will better meet working women's needs, including the need for easy access to where they live or work. We also partner with like-minded investors to combine their resources with our strategic grants to expand the economic potential of working women.

How Coaching Helps Careers

Share |

May 28, 2010

Nicole Clark is a single mother of two who works at a community health center. She and other women like her want to build a career to support herself and her children. The Eleanor Foundation worked with her employer to create an innovative workplace career advancement program. Through this Eleanor Network program, Nicole earned a promotion at work and received a full scholarship to a local university.

"What surprised me most is how other women on staff were going through the same things I was," said Nicole, a single working mother of two. "I learned that the Eleanor Foundation is there to assist me. If it hadn't been for CCHC and Eleanor Foundation, I would not have been able to go back to school."

"I want to leave a legacy. I want my daughters to look at my life and see that hard work is important to make your dreams come true."

Nicole C.

Balancing her full-time job and studies with raising her daughters, she'll receive her Bachelor's degree this fall. Nicole is one of four women in Eleanor-funded programs who received full scholarships at Robert Morris University, where she is working on her business management degree. While working full-time, going to school and raising her young children, Nicole's worked closely with her mentor, CCHC's Chief Program Officer, whose time-management coaching helped Nicole to juggle her responsibilities successfully. She was promoted at work in February 2009 and is on track to graduate from Robert Morris in 2010. Meanwhile, her oldest daughter earned straight As at school, saying to Nicole, "If my Mom can do it, I have to do it."

Now, Nicole plans to pursue her MBA at Robert Morris and focus on marketing—an advanced education that she believes will help her launch a new business to help single parents create a comfortable home. What's more, she intends to grow her career at CCHC, where her work provides personal fulfillment.

"I want to leave a legacy," shared Nicole. "I want my daughters to look at my life and see that hard work is important to make your dreams come true."