Your education should connect with the work you do every day. If you serve at a nonprofit, rescue mission, recovery ministry, or Christian homeless shelter, your courses can help you become more effective in your current role while preparing you for greater responsibility.
That connection is central to how we approach education at City Vision University. More than three quarters of our students are connected with partner nonprofits and ministries. At the time of this orientation, we were providing approximately $160,000 in scholarships to students at those organizations, representing almost 20% of our budget.
We make that investment because we want you to succeed. But success involves more than completing assignments. It means maintaining your financial aid eligibility, involving your supervisor, applying your learning at work, and developing a realistic plan for your future. For students coming out of recovery programs, it also means building the life skills that support lasting growth.
Key Takeaways
- Track scholarship and Pell Grant requirements separately, and confirm current financial details with City Vision staff.
- Involve your supervisor in course planning, project sharing, and ongoing professional development.
- Align your education with career goals and the workplace skills needed for advancement.
- The Wounded Healers program connects educational aftercare with practical life skills and holistic recovery planning.
Table of Contents
- Understand Your Scholarship and Financial Aid Requirements
- Make Your Supervisor Part of Your Education
- Connect Your Courses to a Career Ladder
- Understand the Full Range of Partnership Opportunities
- Educational Aftercare Through the Wounded Healers Program
- Build a Holistic Plan for Growth
Understand Your Scholarship and Financial Aid Requirements
One of the first things to understand is that your City Vision scholarship and your Pell Grant have different academic requirements. Keeping track of both helps you make informed decisions about your courses.
Maintaining your partner scholarship
The scholarship expectations described in this orientation require a 3.0 GPA. If your GPA falls below that level, you may be placed on scholarship probation.
Scholarship probation does not necessarily mean you can no longer receive a scholarship. Under the arrangement described here, the scholarship is paid at the end of the term, and you must earn an A or B in each course to receive it.
The purpose is to support your education while keeping you focused on academic progress. If you are having difficulty, ask staff about your situation rather than assuming you have lost all support.
Maintaining Pell Grant eligibility
At the time of this orientation, more than three quarters of City Vision students who applied for a Pell Grant received one. However, receiving a grant initially is not the same as maintaining eligibility throughout your program.
The academic requirements summarized here include:
- A GPA requirement ranging from approximately 1.5 to 2.0, depending on how far you have progressed in your program.
- A GPA expectation closer to 2.0 as you approach graduation.
- A requirement to complete the majority of the courses you begin.
Course withdrawals can affect that progress. The timing matters, so do not assume that dropping a course has no financial aid consequences. Ask City Vision staff how a withdrawal would affect your record before making that decision.
For broader context, Federal Student Aid explains how to maintain federal student aid eligibility. Your specific circumstances still need to be reviewed with the university.
A financial example, not a current award quote
The figures presented in this orientation were for the 2023 to 2024 academic year. They illustrate how a Pell Grant and partner scholarship could work together, but they should not be treated as current tuition or award amounts.
- Maximum Pell Grant amount in the example: $924 per course.
- Partner scholarship in the example: $250 per course.
- Tuition in the example: $800 per course.
- Resulting refund in the example: $374 per course, paid at the end of the course.
The $250 scholarship arrangement applied when an organization had two or more students enrolled with City Vision during the relevant year. For an organization with only one student, the orientation described a 10% scholarship, which would equal $80 on an $800 course.
These distinctions matter when planning your finances. Confirm your organization’s participation level, your own award, and current tuition with staff. You can also review the federal overview of Pell Grants to better understand that source of support.
Make Your Supervisor Part of Your Education
We do not want your education to become disconnected academics. If you work at a partner organization, your supervisor should understand what you are learning and how it connects with your responsibilities.
During new student orientation, send your supervisor or program staff the email template provided. That begins a conversation that should continue throughout your studies.
Start with a goals meeting
Schedule an initial conversation about your personal and professional goals. You will already be thinking about these goals during orientation and in your assignments. Write them down and bring them into the discussion.
Talk about what you hope your education will help you accomplish. What skills do you want to strengthen? What positions might you want to move into? How could City Vision help you prepare?
This gives your supervisor an opportunity to connect your goals with the organization’s needs. It also helps you discover whether your understanding of a future role matches what the organization actually expects.
Use regular meetings to keep the connection active
You do not necessarily need a separate meeting every time you discuss school. Regular one-to-one meetings, or appropriate team meetings, can provide a natural place for updates.
- Tell your supervisor which courses you are taking and how they are going.
- Discuss courses available next term and ask for input.
- Review your overall degree plan in light of your work responsibilities.
- Share major projects that relate to your job or help explain your goals.
Sharing major projects is especially valuable. Your supervisor may see a practical use for something you developed in class. A project may also help them understand you better as a person.
For example, people I supervise have shared their final projects from Vocation, Calling, and Purpose of Work. Those projects have helped me understand who they are and how to support them more effectively.
Include your education in your professional development plan
If your organization uses an annual review or professional development process, City Vision should be a significant part of that conversation. You are investing substantial time in your education. Make that investment visible in your plan.
Discuss what you have learned, what you want to develop next, and how your upcoming courses support those goals. This connects your degree plan with your growth at work rather than treating them as separate commitments.
Connect Your Courses to a Career Ladder
Many partner ministries have career paths that begin with frontline work, sometimes called guest support, and move toward more specialized or leadership responsibilities.
The exact titles vary, but two common directions are client services and management.
- Case management and counseling: Frontline roles may lead to case manager, counselor, lead counselor, and sometimes senior counselor positions.
- Management and leadership: Staff may progress toward program manager, program director, or director of programs roles.
Different positions may carry different educational expectations. Smaller organizations may not have every level, while growing organizations may add intermediate roles to create clearer opportunities for advancement.
Start by identifying where you are now and where you would like to go. Then ask your supervisor a direct question: What would I need to demonstrate to be ready for that position?
Part of the answer may involve courses or a degree. Another part may involve everyday performance: arriving on time, becoming more effective with clients, or developing other professional habits.
Education matters, but it is not a substitute for those responsibilities. Use your City Vision course plan to support the full development process, including the areas your supervisor identifies as needing growth.
Understand the Full Range of Partnership Opportunities
Our relationship with a partner organization can extend beyond one employee earning a degree. Different parts of a ministry may benefit from different educational pathways.
At the time of this orientation, approximately 25% of our students were graduates or near graduates of partner recovery programs, while approximately 75% were engaged in staff training. Both groups are important to our partnership approach.
Staff education and tuition reimbursement
City Vision programs can support staff development across an organization. We also provide information on tuition reimbursement best practices for organizations considering how to help employees pursue education.
If you are in leadership, consider how individual course plans could connect with the development needs of your staff. The goal is to make education useful to both the employee and the ministry.
Retail and food services management
For organizations operating thrift stores, the retail management certificate is particularly relevant. The orientation also described plans to add a thrift store course to that pathway.
For ministries with food service operations, whether internal or connected with a social enterprise, the food services management certificate offers another focused option.
These pathways are also intended to help recovery program graduates build skills for advancement in retail and food services. The purpose is not simply to help someone get a job, but to help them prepare for greater responsibility once employed.
Fundraising and recognition of existing training
Development staff can explore nonprofit fundraising certificates at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
We also recognize that partner organizations may already provide strong training for clients or employees. Credit recognition offers a way to explore how that learning might connect with a student’s education. If your organization has substantial training, connect the relevant staff with City Vision to discuss it.
Educational Aftercare Through the Wounded Healers Program
For graduates of recovery programs, education can be part of the next stage of growth. Our Wounded Healers Aftercare Partnership Program is designed to support that transition in cooperation with partner organizations.
The program described here provides intensive support and life skills education for students who graduated from residential recovery programs within the previous three years. It can also include students from certain prison reentry programs.
The goal goes beyond academic knowledge and job preparation. We want students to develop the habits, relationships, and practical skills that support a healthier life.
We think of this as building on the foundation a partner ministry has already established. An organization may provide the introductory level of recovery and life skills education. City Vision can provide a next level for a subset of those graduates.
Begin with purpose and a sustainable life plan
Vocation, Calling, and Purpose of Work helps students develop a life plan and understand work from a Christian perspective. It connects questions about employment with deeper questions about purpose.
The Wounded Healers course is another important starting point. We encourage students in this program to take it early because it includes developing a personal relapse prevention and life balance plan.
Even if you have been sober for some time, that planning can still be useful. It also introduces practices you may eventually use to help others develop their own plans.
Develop practical life skills
The broader curriculum addresses several connected areas:
- Emotional intelligence and healthy relationships: Developing healthier ways to understand emotions and relate to others.
- Personal finance: Building practical financial skills.
- Holistic personal health: Paying attention to physical care as part of overall well-being.
- Job and internship search strategies: Developing job search and interview skills.
- Family issues and recovery: Working through issues connected with family of origin.
- Technology, life balance, and behavioral addictions: Addressing the risk of replacing chemical addictions with other unhealthy patterns.
These topics belong together because progress in one area does not automatically resolve difficulties in another. Preparing for work, maintaining relationships, managing finances, and caring for yourself all contribute to a more sustainable next stage of life.
Build a Holistic Plan for Growth
A holistic recovery plan considers the person as a whole. That includes processing past trauma, managing thoughts and emotions, developing healthy relationships, caring for physical health, and establishing boundaries and self-care.
It also includes employment, finances, career development, and marketability. These are not unrelated concerns added onto recovery. They are part of the practical life a student is building.
Our Christian perspective is integrated throughout this approach. Faith is not confined to a single course while the rest of life is treated separately. The aim is to connect learning, behavior, and core beliefs across these different areas.
Whether you are a staff member pursuing advancement or a recovery program graduate taking your next educational step, the same principle applies: make your education part of a larger plan for growth.
Know the requirements for your financial support. Keep your supervisor involved. Share meaningful projects. Choose courses that connect with your goals, and ask for help when you need it. We want your time at City Vision to strengthen both your future and the people you serve.