For Alex Marshall, the path to a career in healthcare started close to home at the 蹤獲扦 at Ashtabula campus.
Marshall, a respiratory therapist at s main campus, says the Regional Campus gave him an opportunity to pursue higher education and discover a specialized healthcare career he hadnt even known existed.
I think without 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula, I probably wouldn't have gone to college, Marshall said.
That local connection became the starting point for a career that would take him into intensive care units and the pulmonary side of one of the nations leading healthcare systems.
Today, Marshall works primarily in the Intensive Care Unit at Cleveland Clinic, caring for patients with complex respiratory needs. But the equipment, skills and patient-care approach he uses in his work can be traced back to the education he received at 蹤獲扦s Ashtabula Campus.
A Pathway Close to Home
Marshall grew up in Ashtabula and said the idea of leaving home at 17 or 18 to attend a large university was daunting.
蹤獲扦 Ashtabula offered another option: a way to begin college close to home while still receiving a 蹤獲扦 education.
He didnt start out planning a career in healthcare. He was working in information technology when he realized it wasn't the right fit.
I was more of a people person and I wanted to help people, Marshall said.
That realization sent him exploring the medical field and toward 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula.
He wasnt familiar with all the career possibilities. His father had been a nurse for 30 years, and nursing was one option he considered. But after learning about respiratory therapy, shadowing professionals and seeing the specialty firsthand, he found a career that combined his interest in healthcare with a more specialized role.
He fell in love with it.
The decision to study respiratory therapy at 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula ultimately gave him the foundation for his career.
For students interested in following a similar path, 蹤獲扦s Associate of Applied Science in Respiratory Therapy can be completed in two years at both the Ashtabula Campus and Cleveland Clinic Main Campus. The Cleveland Clinic program, launched in 2023, is taught by 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula faculty, with laboratory instruction and clinical rotations taking place at Cleveland Clinic.
倏堯勳棗s
only
蹤獲扦s Respiratory Therapy program at Cleveland Clinic is currently 倏堯勳棗s only CoARC-accredited respiratory therapy satellite option located within a hospital system.
That opens up the possibility for many other people who may not have the resources to do an entire four-year program, Marshall said.
Graduates can start working after two years and continue to a bachelors degree while employed a path Marshall called very attractive.
The partnership brings the program directly into one of Northeast 倏堯勳棗s largest healthcare systems, giving students the opportunity to learn alongside practicing respiratory therapists while earning their 蹤獲扦 degree.
Learning by Doing
One of the biggest advantages of Marshalls 蹤獲扦 education was the opportunity to develop practical skills before entering the workforce.
The equipment he used in the 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula lab is similar to equipment he encounters at Cleveland Clinic, helping make the transition from student to professional more natural.
That fully prepared me for my career day-to-day, he said.
Marshall emphasizes that working healthcare requires more than simply knowing the facts.
Respiratory therapists also need to know how to communicate with patients and families often in difficult circumstances.
Students practiced interacting with mannequins as if they were real patients, giving them opportunities to develop their communication and bedside manner along with their clinical skills.
蹤獲扦 always made that a focus, Marshall said. You have to have that bedside manner.
That combination of classroom knowledge, hands-on training and patient interaction continues to shape his work.
100%
Hired before
graduation
Every student in 蹤獲扦 Ashtabulas most recent respiratory therapy graduating classes secured an RRT position before graduating.
Bringing the Experience Back to 蹤獲扦
Marshalls connection to 蹤獲扦 didnt end when he graduated.
Now, he is helping students who are following the same path he once took.
As a respiratory therapist at Cleveland Clinic, Marshall works with 蹤獲扦 respiratory therapy students during their clinical rotations, helping them connect what they have learned in the classroom with the realities of patient care.
For Marshall, it is an opportunity to pass along the same excitement for teaching and learning that he experienced as a 蹤獲扦 student.
He also serves as a member of 蹤獲扦s respiratory therapy advisory committee, helping provide perspective from the healthcare field as the program continues to prepare students for the profession.
The roles give Marshall a chance to see the program from both sides first as a student who found his career at 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula and now as a practicing respiratory therapist helping prepare the next generation.
And the need is significant.
12%
Job growth
Employment of respiratory therapists is projected to grow 12% through 2034, much faster than average.
Respiratory therapy is a growing field with opportunities across hospitals and outpatient settings. Marshall said healthcare organizations are continually looking for qualified respiratory therapists, making the education and training of new professionals particularly important.
A Regional Campus With a Big Impact
Marshall hopes his experience also changes the way prospective students think about Regional Campuses.
Students sometimes worry that attending a Regional Campus means giving up opportunities or resources available at a larger university campus.
Marshall sees it differently.
Alex Marshall, BS 26They have everything that a main campus can offer and generally at a much more economical price.
For him, 蹤獲扦 Ashtabula provided something even more fundamental: a starting point.
It allowed him to begin college in a familiar community, discover a career he hadnt previously considered and develop the skills that would eventually take him to one of Northeast 倏堯勳棗s largest healthcare institutions.
And now, as a Cleveland Clinic respiratory therapist and 蹤獲扦 program advisor, he is helping create that same pathway for the next generation.
Find What You Love
Marshall encourages students considering healthcare not to limit themselves to the careers they already know.
Respiratory therapy is just one of many specialized fields, alongside nursing, radiologic technology, cardiac and echo technology and others.
His advice is to explore.
Shadow professionals. Ask questions. See what different healthcare careers look like.
I always say just if you love what you do, you never have to work a day in your life, Marshall said. And I live that. Its four years later. I love coming to work every day.
For Marshall, that journey started not by leaving his hometown, but by finding an opportunity within it.
蹤獲扦s Ashtabula Campus gave him a place to begin. His education gave him the skills to move forward. And the career he discovered there now has him helping patients breathe easier at Cleveland Clinic.
His story is one example of how a 蹤獲扦 Regional Campus can connect students to education, careers and communities - starting close to home and reaching far beyond it.
Flashes Behind the World-Class Care
From the ICU to the operating room, 蹤獲扦 alumni help power one of the worlds leading health systems
