NATCHITOCHES – Forty high school students from Lakeview High School and Natchitoches Central High School participated in this academic year’s sixth and final Healthcare Academic and Career Exploration (ACE) event at Northwestern State University. Since last fall, ACE has engaged with nearly 400 high schoolers from Allen, Catahoula, Grant, Natchitoches, Rapides and Winn parishes. The program’s goal is to raise student awareness of healthcare academic and career opportunities, including behavioral health.
“Our project is funded by a Future of HealthC.A.R.E. Program Grant from The Rapides Foundation which seeks to increase the number of qualified central Louisiana students enrolling in healthcare training programs or entering the healthcare workforce,” said Steven Gruesbeck, ACE executive director.
During the no-cost May 10 program, eight healthcare content experts from NSU and Central Louisiana Technical Community College led high schoolers in discussing nursing, radiologic science, social work and psychology/addiction studies.
Students were also invited to engage with faculty to learn about dual enrollment classes that offer a head start towards healthcare workforce readiness, certification programs, associate and bachelor’s degree programs, summer camps and year-round programs that raise awareness of academic and career opportunities in healthcare.
Information on Healthcare ACE is available at https://www.nsula.edu/healthcareace/. Gruesbeck can be reached at sgruesbeck@nsula.edu.
