Centralia College students pursuing careers in health care have a new resource to help them continue their education, Centralia College said in a recent news release announcing Coordinated Care.
The Washington State provider of low-cost and free health insurance has committed $25,000 to the Centralia College Foundation to provide scholarships and emergency grants to Centralia College students in health care programs.
Half of the funds will be awarded in November through the foundation’s normal scholarship process and will be used to cover students’ tuition and fees, according to the news release. Eligible students can be working towards a two-year degree, a certificate or a bachelor’s degree in behavioral health care.
The other half of the funds will be awarded to students facing one-time financial hardships that threaten their ability to continue their education, according to the news release. These funds will be awarded through the college’s existing emergency grant process.
“For too many Centralia College students, a one-time emergency expense, like a car repair, medical bill or even a dead laptop, is all it takes to force them off track permanently,” explained Christine Fossett, executive director of the Centralia College Foundation. “Those relatively small expenses contribute to workforce shortages and prevent students from escaping poverty. Being able to cover those expenses and keep students in college is a relatively easy way to generate long-term changes in the availability of local health care workers.”
Coordinated Care awarded funds to 10 colleges across the state through its Community Scholarships Program with the intent to remove barriers and support students pursuing careers in health care, according to the news release.
“As we looked at ways to reinvest in the community to impact the health of Washingtonians, we saw a need for more healthcare professionals at all levels,” said Beth Johnson, president and CEO at Coordinated Care. “Centralia College is strategic in how they build solutions for their students and the health care field. Their bachelor of applied science in behavior health care program, for example, is designed to graduate students with knowledge and skills to work with diverse clients and recognize barriers to access and equity within health care systems.”
Currently, Centralia College has about 115 students enrolled in health care programs, according to the news release. Centralia College students are training to work as nurses, nursing assistants, mental health counselors, paramedics, substance use disorder professionals and medical assistants and completing coursework to transfer to four-year colleges for further training to become doctors, physical therapists and more, per the news release, which added that nursing is the second highest-enrolled program at Centralia College.
For more information on Centralia College’s health care training programs, visit www.centralia.edu. For more information on Coordinated Care’s programs, visit www.coordinatedcarehealth.com.
