June 8, 2021
High school students from rural Alabama are participating in annual programs this summer at The University of Alabama where they are learning about the need rural communities have for more doctors and other health-care professionals.
Through the Minority Rural Health Scholars Program and the Rural Health Scholars Program, both part of the UA College of Community Health Sciences, 27 students are spending five weeks on the UA campus taking college courses for credit and learning how to prepare to enter health professions education and training.
The goal of the programs is to encourage rural Alabama high school students to consider health-care professions. With funding for the programs from the Alabama Family Practice Rural Health Board, students do not have to pay for tuition, housing and field trips. The programs conclude June 25.
The two programs are part of the College’s nationally recognized Rural Health Leaders Pipeline, and they are offered in collaboration with Alabama Area Health Education Centers. AHECs were created by Congress in 1971 to increase the quantity, diversity and distribution of health-care professionals, especially in rural and underserved areas.
The Minority Rural Health Scholars Program seeks to increase the number of minority students from rural Alabama who qualify for admission to medical school. The program is for high school graduates who, in addition to taking classes at UA, also are provided tutorials to enhance their knowledge and test-taking skills to achieve competitive scores on the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT). They also shadow physicians and other health-care professionals.
The Rural Health Scholars Program aims to provide opportunities for rising high school seniors from rural communities in Alabama to pursue careers in medicine and other health-care professions. Students take college courses, participate in seminars with practicing health-care professionals and visit health-care facilities.
The mission of the College is to improve and promote the health of individuals and communities in rural Alabama and the Southeast region through leadership in medical and health-related education, primary care and population health; the provision of high-quality, accessible health-care services; and research and scholarship.
Minority Rural Health Scholars:
Rural Health Scholars:
