Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Dual Enrollment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
UAS highlights dual‑enrollment CNA program that put 40 local students through training
Summary
University of Alaska Southeast told the Ketchikan school board its dual‑enrollment certified nurse aide program has trained 40 Ketchikan students in the last two years and provides no‑cost pathways into nursing for high school students.
Representatives from the University of Alaska Southeast Ketchikan campus told the board Wednesday that a dual‑enrollment Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) pathway has trained about 40 Ketchikan students over the past two years and that the program operates at no cost to participating students.
Bill Urquhart, director of the UAS Ketchikan campus and the UAS Maritime Training Center, said UAS and the district partner to offer vocational and college credit courses — including welding, diesel engines, medical terminology and a multi‑credit CNA course (HS 105). Urquhart said the CNA classes have been offered in after‑school or evening formats for cohorts of up to 10 dual‑enrolled high school students, with clinical placements arranged at PeaceHealth Ketchikan or the Pioneer Home.
Urquhart said grants obtained by the university and grants coordinated by the district cover materials and instruction, enabling the program to be offered at no cost to students and without drawing on the district’s general fund. He told the board UAS had run four CNA classes in the last two years, putting “40 students of the Ketchikan area through certified nurse aide training” and enabling those students to sit for the Alaska Board of Nursing exam.
A student testimonial read for the board described a senior who said the CNA course “set me up for my future career in the medical field” and credited the program with clarifying her plans to pursue nursing. Urquhart encouraged board members to contact him and noted other career‑oriented offerings coming this summer, including an invasive green‑crab research class and oceanography courses.
Why this matters The program provides a pipeline from local high schools into health‑care occupations and local employers, and it shows a model for using outside grants and university partnerships to expand career and technical offerings without increasing district operating costs.
What’s next Urquhart offered district staff contact information to coordinate future classes and said UAS intends to continue collaboration; board members asked staff to follow up on potential program expansion and scheduling.
