Years of quiet planning culminate with groundbreaking of ASHS in Demopolis Tuesday, photo gallery

In a historic moment for West Alabama and the Black Belt region, state and local leaders, educators and national philanthropists gathered in Demopolis Tuesday to break ground on the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences, a pioneering residential high school dedicated to preparing students for careers in healthcare.

The ceremony marked the culmination of years of quiet planning led by the ASHS Foundation and supported by a coalition of public and private partners. 

Foundation President and CEO Scott Huffman opened the event by honoring the founding board members and emphasized the school's mission “to ensure our students lack for nothing and have the essentials to be successful in Alabama.”

Demopolis Mayor Woody Collins, reflecting on the journey from confidential conversations to public celebration, called the school “a generational transformation” for the region. “From this day forward, we’re going to be known as the educational centerpiece of not only Alabama, but the United States.”

Gov. Kay Ivey, a former educator herself, praised the community’s unity and commitment. “Bringing this specialty school here is no doubt the most significant investment in West Alabama in decades,” she said. She also announced that Dr. Selwyn Vickers, a native of Demopolis and nationally recognized medical leader, will serve as a special adviser to the school’s board.

Congresswoman Terri Sewell, representing Alabama’s 7th District, hailed the school as a national model. “Today’s groundbreaking is more than just the start of a construction project,” she said. “It is the beginning of a movement to train and uplift the next generation of Alabama healthcare professionals right here in the heart of the Black Belt.”

Bloomberg Philanthropies, which contributed $26.4 million to ASHS, the largest gift in Black Belt history, was represented by Kate Herman, who oversees the foundation’s national healthcare education initiative. “What starts here in Demopolis will help change both education and healthcare in the country,” Herman said.

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ASHS President Jimmy Martin closed the ceremony with a call to action. “This is a golden opportunity for the students of Alabama,” he said. “We’re not just changing their lives, we’re changing the lives of the people they will touch.”

With shovels in the ground and a shared vision in place, the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences begins its journey to become a transformative force in rural education and healthcare workforce development.

The new building is being build behind Whitfield Regional Hospital in Demopolis, and should be completed within a year. While the permanent campus is under construction in Demopolis, the first class will be housed at the University of West Alabama’s campus in Livingston, where students will have access to dining facilities and recreational spaces.

The school, funded through the Alabama State Legislature’s Education Trust Fund, will be open to students statewide and aims to enroll approximately 100 students in its inaugural class. By full capacity, the school will house up to 400 students across grades nine through12.

Admissions for ASHS opened Oct. 1, and interest is already growing, with applications received from cities like Tuscaloosa. In a recent informational meeting for potential students in Selma, Martin stressed the urgency behind the school’s creation, citing alarming statistics about nursing shortages expected by 2026. “We’re going to have problems meeting the basic healthcare needs of our populace if we don’t act,” he said. “This school is our answer.”

For more information or to apply, families are encouraged to visit the school’s website at www.alheathcarehs.org. Or students and parents can contact their local school counselors.