Governor pushes legislature for healthcare high school in Demopolis
From the West Alabama Newsroom–
Governor Kay Ivey calls on lawmakers to approve funding for the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences in Demopolis.
Ivey told legislators that the healthcare high school project was one of her top priorities. And she urged lawmakers to make it a reality.
She also announced that the results of the feasibility study the legislature requested last year when she first proposed the new school — showed that Demopolis is the best location for the school.
“Certainly we wanted to be named the city of choice. But it was not a surprise because we’re ready,” said Rob Pearson.
“The Governor has bought on to this. We’ve bought on to this. We’ve stepped up where we’ve been asked to step up,” said Demopolis Mayor Woody Collins.
“Now we’re just asking our state officials to help us out.”
The statewide residential high school — would offer a STEM curriculum with every subject related to healthcare. In addition to getting hands-on clinical training and experience at Whitfield Regional Hospital.
“When you’re at a big campus, it’s very hard to understand how it all comes together to deliver healthcare,” said Whitfield CEO Douglas Brewer.
“Here, you can follow patients from ED to surgery to ICU. You can see how the lab interacts, the lab and radiology interact with these different departments and really begin to understand healthcare. And that’s what makes it such a special place.”
So special in fact, that Bloomberg Philanthropies pledged $26.4 million dollars to help fund the project in the Demopolis — if it is approved by the legislature.
“It has started really a wave of momentum for this project,” said Pearson.
Whitfield CEO Douglas Brewer says the proposed school would have a positive impact on healthcare in the state — by providing workers to help address shortages in the healthcare field — especially in rural areas.
“Studies show if we train students in rural areas, they tend to want to work in rural areas. And we need more healthcare workers in rural areas,” said Brewer.
It would be the state’s 4th STEM school — and the 1st one located in a rural area of the state.
