By GREGORY ZELLER //
It’s “Fame” meets “ER” as Northwell Health prepares to open the region’s first-ever Healthcare High.
The New Hyde Park-based healthcare system is uniting with Bloomberg Philanthropies – one of the nation’s biggest giving groups – and New York City educators to create the Northwell School of Health Sciences, a Queens-based institution designed to deliver a complete high school education while preparing students for immediate employment in busy healthcare fields.
Slated to open in 2025 in Woodside, the School of Health Sciences will “fully integrate healthcare-career knowledge and job training with a high-quality, well-rounded high school experience” for 900 students, who will graduate “directly into high-demand healthcare jobs with family-sustaining wages,” according to Northwell Health.
Billed as a “first-of-its-kind” endeavor, the project is being supported by a $24.9 million investment from Bloomberg Philanthropies, part of the charity’s $250 million plan to open 10 healthcare-focused high schools in communities across the nation. Groundwork for similar schools is already underway in Boston, Philadelphia, Dallas, Houston and Nashville, as well as Demopolis, Ala., Charlotte and Durham, NC, and in Northeast Tennessee.
While certainly not ruling out further college education, Bloomberg Philanthropies’ sprawling effort will ultimately prepare rotating classes totaling 6,000 students for immediate careers in high-demand medical fields – a critically important goal, according to Bloomberg Philanthropies founder Michael Bloomberg, because “America needs more healthcare workers.”
“And we need a stronger, larger middle class,” Bloomberg added. “This is a way to help accomplish both goals.”
New York City’s 108th mayor – who made his billions as founder of Bloomberg L.P., a privately held financial, software, data and media mothership based in Manhattan – stressed that “our education system has failed to prepare students for good jobs in high-growth industries,” and said the multipronged, multistate mission would directly address that shortfall.
Michael Bloomberg: Growth plan.
“By combining classroom learning with hands-on experience, these specialized healthcare high schools will prepare students for careers with opportunities for growth and advancement,” Bloomberg added.
New York City Public Schools will co-develop the curriculum for the Woodside institution, combining “robust academic programming, specialized healthcare classes, work-based learning and the opportunity to earn industry-valued credentials and certifications along with traditional high school learning and diplomas,” Northwell Health said in a statement.
With Northwell in the fold – not just New York’s largest healthcare system (by numbers of providers and patients), but the state’s largest private employer – the overriding idea is “bigger than just one school,” according to Northwell Health President and CEO Michael Dowling.
“This is a new model for education that will create a better future for thousands of students and make a lasting impact on the future of healthcare for countless more,” Dowling said Wednesday.
While the initial focus will be on building out the ambitious Woodside facility, New York City Public Schools – a vast K-12 system encompassing 1,819 schools and more than 986,000 students – envisions system-wide improvements in healthcare-specific programming, including new professional-development opportunities for teachers and school counselors and state-of-the-art training hubs for non-School of Health Sciences students interested in future healthcare occupations.
Venture partners: New York City Public Schools Chancellor David Banks (left) and Northwell Health President and CEO Michael Dowling are breaking the mold with the Northwell School of Health Sciences.
In a statement, New York City Public Schools Chancellor David Banks called the joint venture “a tremendous example of the way that public-private partnerships bridge gaps and build gateways to opportunity for our young people.”
“It is paramount that we give our young people the bright starts that will lead them to bold futures, and this new school is a consummate example of reimagining the student experience,” Banks added. “New York City Public Schools continues to grow stronger as we stand with industry partners who share a collective groundbreaking vision and fearless conviction.”
With programming expected to center on nursing, lab work, medical technology, physical therapy and behavioral health, the new school will open doors to no-college-required entry-level positions that actually pay livable wages – while directly addressing real-world employment needs throughout the massive Northwell Health system, according to its CEO.
“What we plan to build together in Queens is … a visionary collaboration to improve public health and promote health equity in this city and beyond,” Dowling said. “Northwell remains committed to attracting and preparing more students for careers in healthcare that we need now and for our future.”
