September 29, 2025

Preston Kendall, President, Cristo Rey St. Martin College Prep

Cristo Rey St. Martin College Prep is a co-sponsored ministry of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus.

This summer, 40 Cristo Rey St. Martin students—26 juniors and 14 seniors—completed an intensive Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) program through a partnership with Dominican University. Running from June 17 through August 15, the program provided both academic and hands-on training to prepare students for the Illinois Nurse Assistant Competency Exam (INACE).

Classes were held on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students spent their mornings in the classroom and their afternoons in the Sim Lab on CRSM’s campus. By the end of the program, each student had completed 40 didactic hours, 18 lab hours, and 40 clinical hours at local healthcare facilities, including Whitehall in Deerfield and Presbyterian Homes facilities, The Moorings in Arlington Heights, and Lake Forest Place.

Almost 70 percent of students passed the CNA exam on their first attempt, outperforming the 62 percent pass rate of comparable dual credit programs. The course, taught by an experienced instructor from Dominican University and who also served as Program Coordinator, offered students a powerful entry point into healthcare and demonstrated the impact of strong partnerships in preparing future leaders in medicine.

A special thank you to Dominican University, our facilities team, and our work-study team for helping to launch this program. We are proud of our students’ hard work and look forward to all they will achieve next.