ASHS awarded $7.27M to prepare students for rural healthcare careers

The Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences has been awarded $7.27 million in federal grant funding to prepare students for healthcare careers and strengthen the workforce serving Alabama’s rural communities.

Gov. Kay Ivey announced the award Thursday through the Rural Workforce Initiative of the Alabama Rural Health Transformation Program. The funding will support the statewide residential high school, transportation to clinical placements and partnerships with healthcare providers and educational institutions.

“Every Alabamian deserves access to quality care, and through the Rural Health Transformation Program, we are helping many providers and institutions improve healthcare for Alabamians throughout the state,” Ivey said. “I commend all the thoughtful efforts, from the federal policymakers and state administrators to our professional healthcare leaders, who are working hard to ensure the long-term success of this program.”

“This grant reflects real foresight in preparing Alabama’s future healthcare leaders,” said Rob Pearson, vice president of strategic partnerships for the ASHS Foundation. “By supporting hands-on training and community partnerships, these funds will help students build the skills and relationships they need to serve rural Alabama. That investment will have an impact for years to come, advancing ASHS’s mission to strengthen the healthcare workforce in communities where the need is greatest.” 

ASHS is Alabama’s fourth public residential specialty high school and its first focused on healthcare. Tuition-free and open to students statewide, the school combines rigorous college-preparatory academics taught through a lens of healthcare with hands-on training, professional experience and a supportive residential community. 

Students pursue three healthcare pathways, with opportunities to earn industry credentials with their diplomas, and to prepare for entry into the workforce or higher education. Partnerships with hospitals, colleges, universities and other healthcare organizations connect classroom instruction with clinical settings and the needs of communities students may one day serve. 

Led by Head of School Laura Bailey, ASHS opened in August with an inaugural class of ninth- and 10th-graders representing more than 45 Alabama communities. Students are studying and living at the University of West Alabama in Livingston while the school’s permanent 10-acre campus is under construction in Demopolis.

The ASHS award was among 34 grants totaling nearly $55 million announced in the federally funded program’s second round. Grants are administered through the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs.

The announcement coincided with Thursday’s launch of ASHS recruitment for the 2027-28 school year, when an expanded student body will study and live on the school’s purpose-built, 10-acre Demopolis campus adjacent to Whitfield Regional Hospital. 

Prospective students and families can learn more at ALhealthcareHS.org.