NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A new public charter high school in Nashville is preparing to welcome its first class of students with a mission to address Tennessee's critical nursing shortage by training the next generation of healthcare professionals.
Nurses Middle College Nashville will open its doors to 140 students in two weeks, offering specialized healthcare education alongside a traditional high school curriculum.
"We want to prepare students, especially students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, to be able to go into healthcare careers, and try to bridge the gaps," said Andrea Poynter, Executive Director of the school.
Half of the enrolled students are Black, and 45% are Hispanic. The school has also attracted a significant number of male students interested in nursing careers.
"The male nursing percentage in the United States is about 9%. Our school is 19.8% so we have already doubled what you would normally see for males in healthcare," Poynter said.
This initiative comes at a critical time for Tennessee's healthcare system. The Tennessee Hospital Association reported the state was short more than 15,000 registered nurses in 2021. Despite recent efforts to address this gap, projections still show a shortfall of 8,500 nurses in the state by 2035.
"Nursing is the largest profession, and it's suffering the greatest shortage, but I want to meet people wherever their passions are," Poynter said.
Students can attend the charter school tuition-free, with the only requirement being graduation from middle school. The curriculum is designed to balance traditional education with specialized healthcare training.
"Half their courses are sort of those prerequisites, graduation requirements, things that we know that they need to be successful in high school, but also in college. But then we get to use the other half of their schedule to focus on health science," Principal Kevin Rose said.
The program offers students the opportunity to graduate from high school with EMT, CNA, and doula certifications, creating valuable career pathways.
"It opens up doors and pathways that are just unlike anything else that I've seen in high school," Rose said.
By 2029, the school plans to expand to include grades 9-12 and welcome approximately 500 students.
Click here to learn more about the program.
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