“Teaching kind of found me,” said Blansett. “But I’m so happy I made the career change.”
Blansett, or “Miss Mia” as her students know her, always wanted a career in the healthcare field. After earning her bachelor’s degree in exercise and movement science from William Paterson University, Blansett was working as a paraprofessional at Cherokee High School, helping a student who was suffering from cerebral palsy. While working there, she attended EMT school at night and ultimately decided to work as a full-time EMT and then completed a medical assistant education program.
After graduation, Blansett worked for Calloway Labs doing drug testing in a pain management office before working at the Heart House as a cardiac tech.
“I entered the medical field because I wanted to help people on a daily basis,” she said. “I am a very caring and empathetic person.”
Blansett loves passing that caring attitude on to the students she teaches at Prism Career Institute.
“I feel the best when students succeed in the field and are grateful for their education,” she said. “I love when students come back after graduation and tell me that I had an impact on their success.”
With a passion to prepare students for the National Healthcareer Association (NHA) certification exam, Blansett is proud of her 2013 100 percent pass rate among her students.
“Success to me is being happy,” she added. “I have a motto – ‘No job is worth your misery.’ Happiness is more important to me than anything else.”
Blansett enjoys every student with whom she interacts on a daily basis, but has two who stand out.
“I have two favorite student stories. When I first started at Prism, there was a student by the name of Jesus. He grew up in Atlantic City and had fallen into the gang life and had multiple problems. He came to school to better himself and I feel I had a big impact in that. He now works as a medical assistant at a pediatric practice. My other favorite story is recent graduate Linda Luthke. She was one of our older students that came to us after working in the casinos for years. Linda struggled at first. There were days in my class that she’d be in tears but I always tried to help get a smile on her face. I pushed Linda everyday she was here and helped her achieve her goal of becoming a certified medical assistant.”
Outside of work, Blansett belongs to a motorcycle club, Rolling Badges LE MC, which is a law enforcement riding club. The organization conducts multiple events with different police agencies and other emergency services and Blansett serves as secretary of the organization. Not surprisingly, her favorite thing to do outside of work is ride her 2012 Harley Davidson Street Bob.
“There’s no better feeling then hitting the open road on two wheels. I have been riding for almost 10 years now,” she said.
When Blansett meets someone for the first time, she proudly tells him or her what she does for a living.
“I tell them I teach future medical assistants at Prism ‘down the shore,’ she said. “I teach them how to work in doctor’s offices or hospitals in the future and how to succeed.”