Training and Employment Funds’ Class of 2026: Celebrating Generations of Graduates

The 1199SEIU Training and Employment Funds (TEF) recently celebrated this year’s class of graduates across multiple ceremonies, honoring the milestones members achieved and TEF’s longstanding partnerships with institutions that make those milestones possible.

10 Years and Growing Stronger: TEF’s Partnership with Monroe University

TEF has partnered with Monroe University for a decade, proudly helping 1199SEIU members earn degrees from the School of Allied Health Professions. In 2026, this partnership reached a new milestone with the largest graduating class yet: 122 members who are ready to advance their healthcare careers.

Monroe University is recognized nationwide as a leader in educating first-generation students, consistently ranking among New York’s top institutions for graduating Black and Latino students and improving its graduates’ social mobility, with a diverse campus community representing 93 countries and 43 languages.

This year’s Monroe University graduation ceremony took place on June 11, with a joyful celebration at Radio City Music Hall.

Unfinished Degrees to Master’s-bound Graduates with HC4

The Health Careers College Core Curriculum (HC4) Program is one of TEF’s pathways to higher education, operating through direct partnerships with Monroe University, the College of Staten Island and Lehman College.

HC4 students, many of whom have been out of school for years, take 12 to 36 college core credits within their own cohort to rebuild the academic habits and time-management skills that school demands. After completing the program, members continue into their major either at their current college or another institution to earn higher-education credentials.

Chrystol Albert-Hope, a Medical Case Manager at the Community Healthcare Network, graduated from Monroe University with a Bachelor of Science in Community Health and Wellness. Her path to that degree began with the HC4 Program. After dropping out at 17 as a single mother, Chrystol returned to school years later and began taking college core credits to advance her career.

To learn more about the HC4 Program, please email HC4Information@1199Funds.org.

Downstate Recognition Ceremony Brings Together Graduates and Leaders

As a recent graduate, Chrystol Albert-Hope was invited to speak at TEF’s Downstate Recognition Ceremony on June 25, 2026. In her speech, Chrystol reflected on her journey alongside her son, who was pursuing two master’s degrees at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica while she was in school. She said, “When I was in school, so was my son, whom I had at the age of 17. He came to my graduation, and said, ‘Mom, the bachelor’s has become the norm—like finishing high school. The master’s is the real thing.’ Then he added, ‘So, in September, I’m going for my master’s degree in public health: epidemiology.’ He wins.”

Other guest speakers included Career Pathways Training (CPT) Program participants Joseph Long, who graduated from the Helene Fuld College of Nursing with an Associate’s Degree in Nursing, and Bob Ssendagire, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Mount Saint Vincent.”

Mayor Mamdani: TEF graduates embody the city’s “relentless ambition and drive.”

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani delivered the keynote speech at TEF’s Downstate Recognition Ceremony. He emphasized how much the achievements of 1199SEIU members matter to the city, acknowledging the barriers that members faced to reach that evening: “In this room, I see the relentless ambition and drive that defines so much of our city, the many challenges you had to overcome just to get to this evening. More than 2,500 of you immigrated here from another country. More than 1,600 of you speak multiple languages. And many of you are working parents. You are looking after an aging family member. You’re caring for a neighbor who needs help. When you provide solace and comfort, you do so not only because it’s a job but it’s also a purpose.”

Personal Care Attendants Honored for Professional Development Completion

“You are the backbone of the disability community.” Dianna Hu

Personal Care Attendants (PCAs) are part of the fabric of the everyday lives of their clients. Helping them bathe, dress and groom; safely transferring them out of bed to walking or wheelchairs; and ensuring they are nourished and living in a sanitary environment.

TEF’s Workplace Partnerships and Occupational Certifications Programs train certified healthcare workers and successfully transition them into the workforce, including PCAs and Home Health Aides. On April 15, 2026, the Massachusetts Recognition Ceremony honored 1199SEIU members who completed the PCA Professional Development Program, proudly celebrating them with a congratulatory video by Dianna Hu, PCA Consumer Employer and Chairperson for the Boston Center for Independent Living’s Board of Trustees.

As a person with a disability herself, Hu said, “When you exercise the needed body mechanics for a complex transfer, we feel safe. When you spot a medical spot before it becomes a trip to an ER, we feel safe, and when you lift a voice of disability justice alongside us, that is the absolute safest we can feel.”

TEF remains committed to opening doors to education, career advancement and more prosperous lives for healthcare workers across the regions we serve.

For more information about occupational certifications, make an appointment on MyTEF.