CHI Memorial awarded its first scholarship as a partner in the Future Ready Institute at Hixson High to Suhani Patel, a senior in the healthcare program. The scholarship was established by CHI Memorial for a student in the CHI Memorial Institute of Healthcare and Medical Careers at Hixson High. The student had to meet academic criteria, complete an application, and an essay.
Due to Hixson High and area schools closing because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the presentation was not handled in the typical fashion. Suhani was made aware of winning via a zoom conference with CHI executives and the Hixson High Future Ready Institute team. To make the presentation, Hixson High and CHI put together a scholarship train to Suhani’s home where a yard sign was planted, and congratulations were extended from each vehicle in the parade.
Patel’s high school career accomplishments show her commitment to her school and community. She is the Class of 2020 Salutatorian, secretary of the National Honor Society at Hixson, a representative in the Student Government Association, participated in the National Chemistry Olympiad, and on the junior and senior Student Council. In the healthcare program, Patel earned her certification and was licensed by the state as a Certified Nursing Assistant, and she is a Certified Medical Assistant. Patel served as president of the Hixson Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) Chapter. She was active in her community in Erlanger Compass Rose events, volunteered in the IronMan competition, and helped with the Hixson Blood Assurance blood drive.
The career goals for Patel include becoming a registered nurse and a nurse practitioner.
CHI Memorial formally announced a partnership with the successful Hixson High Future Ready Institute healthcare program in January, and the Hixson program became known as the CHI Memorial Institute of Healthcare and Medical Careers at Hixson High School. The new partnership in the Future Ready Institute in Hamilton County Schools adds another local prominent business or organization to the effort to prepare graduates for success after graduation. During the ceremony announcing the partnership, Rhonda Hatfield, chief nursing officer and senior vice president at CHI Memorial, shared job prospects for the future with healthcare students gathered for the announcement. “I want to tell you why this Future Ready Institute is so important,” said Hatfield. “The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts by the year 2030; an additional 2 million healthcare jobs will be needed to meet the demands of an aging population. That should be exciting to students interested in the field of healthcare.”
“The reason our program at Hixson is successful can be summed up in two words – provide opportunities,” said Hannah Stewart, instructor of the sports and human performance program at Hixson. “We want to thank CHI Memorial for partnering with us to help our program continue to grow and serve our students who are so passionate about what they do in our program here at Hixson.”
Dr. Bryan Johnson, superintendent of Hamilton County Schools, launched Future Ready Institutes in 2018. The new career programs within a school concept challenge the traditional approach to education in high schools by developing career-themed small learning communities. Themes include medicine, robotics, forensic science, engineering, hospitality, technology, business, marketing, and more. Teachers of all content areas, including English, math, science, and social studies, work closely with the career theme teacher to provide classroom instruction through the lens of a career. The goal is for students to clearly understand why a lesson is important and how they will use the information in the future.
Future Ready Institutes are a vital part of the district’s five-year strategic plan that includes providing future-ready students prepared for success after graduation. The institutes also help to accelerate student achievement, which is also one of the five action areas included in the plan that will direct academic progress for Hamilton County Schools through 2023.
Photos: Patel works in class at Hixson High as Argelia Avilia plays the role of her patient.