LPS and BCHS announce new Medical Science Focus Program to open in 2022
A partnership between Lincoln Public Schools and the Bryan College of Health Sciences will launch the Bryan Health College of Health Sciences Focus Program, set to open in Northwest High School in the fall of 2022.
“LPS continues to look for opportunities to collaborate with community partners that will engage our students and enhance their experiences while we prepare them to graduate college and be career ready,” said LPS Superintendent Steve Joel. “We look forward to working with Bryan College of Health Sciences in providing students with this exciting choice for exploring careers in the medical sciences.”
BCHS President Rich Lloyd hopes getting high school students to explore medical sciences will help increase interest in an industry with growing demand.
“The need for qualified health care workers in Lincoln and surrounding areas is not going away. To start building interest in the medical sciences early on, is imperative to building our work force well into the future. We look forward to partnering with LPS to build a meaningful pathway into the medical sciences for high school students,” Lloyd said.
Through hands-on, immersive experiences and dual-credit classes, the program will prepare students for a variety of careers in the medical field. Students will begin course work their freshman and sophomore years as health science curriculum will be integrated into math, science and health classes. Juniors and seniors will be able to enroll in the dual-credit courses to earn early college credit.
Several classes will be offered online and face to face through BCHS. Face to face courses will include Certified Nurse Aid (CNA), Phlebotomy and Anatomy and Physiology. Labs and classrooms for the focus program will be located inside the new high school. Focus program students will also be matched with BCHS students as part of a mentoring program, and there will be shadowing opportunities available.
James Blake, LPS director of strategic initiatives and focus programs, says this program challenges LPS students to explore fields in medical sciences and will prepare them to meet the demands of advanced medical careers.
“For students who know they want to enter the medical field, they will be highly engaged in this program,” Blake said. “For those who do not see a medical career as their end goal, this will still enhance their problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. These skills are essential to future success in any field.”
The focus program is designed to be affordable and accessible to LPS students and their families. Non-credit experiences will be available to students free-of-charge. Students who opt to take classes for college credit can do so at a reduced tuition rate. The Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools will also raise funds to help with scholarships for the program.
