Students will have jobs

The new program offers
certifications in a dozen health care fields.

By HAROLD GWIN

VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — Students enrolled in a new health career program at Choffin Career & Technical Center are being guaranteed a job.

The Secondary School for Nursing, Medical and Allied Health Careers is a two-year program for juniors and seniors launched this fall.

Students in the program will be placed in a health-related, paying job in the second year of the program, said Stella Camuso, a registered nurse and one of the program’s instructors.

They can keep that job after graduation or use it as a stepping stone to something else, she said.

The program is being touted by school officials as the first “health magnet school” in the tri-county area.

The 40 students in the first class come primarily from the Youngstown city schools but include students from Lowellville, Campbell, Cardinal Mooney, Ursuline and Struthers.

There has also been some interest from some suburban schools, according to Camuso.

The program has a capacity for 60 students.

Joseph Meranto, director at Choffin, said the program, offering certifications in 12 health-related fields, was the brainstorm of Camuso and Brenda Barton, a medical technician and also a Choffin instructor.

They came up with the idea and put the program together, Meranto said, noting that the district was able to secure some federal grant funds to hire a third instructor needed to make the whole thing work.

The program was launched at no additional cost to the city school district, he said.

It is a response to the local and national shortage of credentialed health care providers, Camuso said. Participants will get a chance at multidisciplinary certifications, college credit and job experience.

Students can earn as many as 14 semester hours of college credit from Youngstown State University, an encouragement for them to continue their education after leaving high school, she said.

Students wanting to enroll in the program must have a minimum 2.0 grade point average and have no behavioral or disciplinary issues. State law also requires drug screenings and background checks, Camuso said.

“It’s always exciting when you’re doing something positive and moving forward,” said Dr. Wendy Webb, Youngstown superintendent, pointing out that the school board allowed Choffin to realign some of its resources to implement this program.

U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, of Niles, D-17th, and state Sen. John Boccieri, of New Middletown, D-33rd, were on hand for the formal unveiling of the program Monday.

Ryan praised what he called “positive leadership” in the city schools in taking steps to put young men and women in position to take advantage of growing industries.

“We need to focus on the positives,” he said, promising his support for the program.

gwin@vindy.com