National Skills Summit

National Skills Summit
Innovative Initiatives: Consortiums

National Consortium on Health Science and Technology Education: The National Health Science Career Path Model

The Challenge:

To introduce students to educational concepts and to the health care industry at an early age and to provide a system of preparation, recognition and evaluation that contributes to a consistent, high level of quality across the workforce.

The Solution:

Partner with school districts to build awareness of healthy lifestyles and health careers among younger students and offer training and internships to older students, culminating in nationally recognized certification.

The Partners:

National Consortium on Health Science and Technology Education (NCHSTE) is a national membership organization of individuals and organizations with vested interests in both education and health care reform. Charter consortium members include representatives of the American Hospital Association, Kaiser Permanente, and six state Departments of Education-California, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Today, the consortium membership has grown to representing a constituency of more than 600,000 educators and health care workers.

U.S. Department of Education, the National School-to-Work Office, and the National Skills Standards Board have provided NCHSTE with a School-to-Work grant for development and implementation of a Health Science Career Path Model.

The Story:

Organized in 1990, the NCHSTE immediately recognized the need to reduce duplication and fragmentation of health care training efforts. Further, its continued focus has been to ensure the existence of an educational system (formal and informal) that meets employment demands in health care. The consortium reviews the field of health care delivery and education to identify trends and issues. Actions taken by government, health care institutions, labor, and educational institutions are of special interest. Implications of such actions are important to the current and future needs of a skilled workforce.

The consortium first developed National Health Care Skill Standards in collaboration with West Ed Laboratory. Based on this research, the Health Science Career Path Model was framed. This project, funded federally since 1996 as a School-to-Work initiative, offers an educational system model and resources to improve student performance and to build awareness of health careers. It is a K-Lifelong Learning model.

In the elementary school component, children are exposed to healthy lifestyles and to various health care related activities to heighten their awareness of health careers. Middle school teachers integrate a diversity of health related career information into academic courses including opportunities for job shadowing. High school students continue the same integrated approach, including job shadowing, internships, and youth apprenticeship experiences. Throughout the model, instruction is delivered jointly with and among academic and health science educators and health care professionals. Recognition certificates for students accomplishing lesson plans goals are available. A national, portable, standards-based skill certificate prototype is being prepared for implementation, including a portfolio and a national cognitive examination.

Over 160 integrated instructional plans are tailored to individual school districts, as well as operational guidelines for industry partnerships, an assessment guide, and accountability criteria to ensure that program graduates meet a set of eight National Health Care "Core" Skill Standards. The consortium also offers professional development workshops, seminars, and conferences for those involved in implementing the National Health Science Career Path Model. More than 1500 people have been involved in developing this initiative.

A Model of Innovation:

By focusing on the entire spectrum of childhood education, the National Health Science Career Path Model generates interest in the health industry, provides opportunities for entry-level jobs upon graduation, and prepares students for further education.

Contacts:

Scott Snelson, Program Director
Utah State Office of Education
250 East 500 South
Salt Lake, Utah 84111
801-538-7889 (p)
801-538-7868 (f)
ssnelson@usoe.k12.ut.us

Nancy Langley Raynor, Section Chief
Workforce Development Education
Education Building
301 N. Wilmington Street
Raleigh, NC 27601-1625
919-715-1765 (p)
919-715-1628 (f)
nraynor@dpi.state.nc.us

Beverly Campbell, Manager
Academic & Career Integration Office
California Department of Education
721 Capitol Mall
Sacremento, CA 95814
916-657-2541 (p)
916-657-2521 (f)
bcampbel@cde.ca.gov

Carole Stace, Supervisor
Program Development & Operations
Michigan Department of Education
PO Box 30008
608 W. Allegan Street
Lansing, MI 48909-7508
517-335-0372 (p)
517-373-8776 (f)
stacyc@state.mi.us