Area Students Get Feel For Rural Health During UA Summer Program

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Two select groups of students from across the state were recently on The University of Alabama campus for the Rural Health Scholars and Rural Minority Health Scholars programs in the College of Community Health Sciences.

These two five-week programs introduce students from rural areas to college life and give them an orientation to the need for health and medical professionals in communities like their own. Statistics show that rural students are more likely to live and practice in rural areas. The concept of the Rural Health Leaders Pipeline was developed as part of a strategy to recruit rural students into medical school.

The Rural Health Scholars, who are rising high school seniors, live on campus, take college courses in English and chemistry, learn about health careers, participate in seminars with practicing health care professionals and make field trips to rural health care facilities and a medical school. Students receive college credit, tuition, housing and a meal ticket. Since the Rural Health Scholars program was founded in 1993, a total of 601 students from rural areas in every Alabama county have participated.

The Rural Minority Health Scholars, who are recent high school graduates who will be attending college, live on campus, take a general chemistry course, attend tutorials, seminars, field trips to rural medical facilities and shadow African-American physicians from their hometowns. This program was initiated to increase the number of minority students from rural Alabama who qualify for admission to medical school through the Rural Medical Scholars Program. Since the program began in 2001 approximately 10 students per year – 156 in all – have attended the program.

Rural Health Scholars included (by home county): Autauga – Jaila Rhodes; Barbour – Tyler Forbes; Bibb – Madison Steed; Blount – Samantha Hardisty; Chilton – Kevin Williams; Clarke – Livia Coleman; Colbert – Victoria King; Covington – Audrey Livingston; Dallas – Ephiphany Simmons; Etowah – Kerrigan Kilpatrick; Franklin – Jamal Anderson; Houston – Camille “Cami Lee” Kueckelhan; Jackson – Caitlyn Swain; Lee – Briana Hardie; Limestone – Haley Clemons; Marengo – Jada Mack; Marion – Keenan Rushing; Marshall – Alexandra Blackstone; Mobile – Maegan McCane; Monroe – Jada Robbins; Morgan – Rachel Terry; St. Clair – Christine Finch; Tallapoosa – Magen Maddox; Tuscaloosa – John “JD” Johnson; and Walker – Katherine Morgan.

Rural Minority Health Scholars included (by home county): Lawrence – Alexandra Mason; Limestone – Jarien Hereford and Kassidi Moore; Marengo – Shannon Baldwin and Nadia Washington; Monroe – Hannah Woodard; Perry – Shadiamond Howze; Sumpter – Cerina James; and Talladega – Jada Hutchins.

These programs are part of the UA Rural Health Leaders Pipeline founded by Dr. John Wheat, professor of Community & Rural Medicine at the College of Community Health Sciences.  The Pipeline’s mission, said Wheat, is to encourage, attract and nurture students of rural Alabama into and through programs to “grow our own” rural health professionals who are leaders in developing healthy communities.