Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin returned to the Appalachian Highlands Oct. 29 to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Southwest Virginia Healthcare Excellence Academy Lab School (SWVA HEALS) at the Emory & Henry Health Sciences Campus.
This marked the official launch of the innovative healthcare education program designed to prepare local high school students for careers in healthcare while also earning college credits.
Youngkin was joined by Education Secretary Aimee Guidera; Del. Israel O’Quinn; U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith; State Sen. Travis Hackworth; Dr. Lou Fincher, Emory and Henry Interim President; and other officials.
“Since the beginning, we’ve seen the opportunity for lab schools to change the way we are doing education and bring the community together,” Youngkin explained. “HEALS is an excellent representation of the lab school initiative, harnessing the intersection between health, excellence, and education. This lab school demonstrates that we have the capability to fulfill workforce needs, like in the healthcare community, in each Virginia community.”
SWVA HEALS is a collaborative initiative offering high school students from Smyth, Wythe, Bristol City, and Washington Counties hands-on training, job shadowing, and dual-enrollment courses through partnerships with Emory & Henry and local hospitals. Aimed at 10th to 12th graders interested in nursing, behavioral health, and other healthcare careers, the program addresses the rural healthcare workforce shortage by inspiring students to pursue and sustain their careers locally.
This milestone comes after the program’s inaugural orientation in August at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center, with 45 juniors now undertaking in-person instruction across Emory & Henry’s Health Sciences Campus in Marion and the Higher Education Center in Abingdon. The program anticipates enrolling 49 sophomores in spring 2025.
