About Us Timeline

Formed in 2019 as a direct response to the region’s urgent need for more healthcare and health science workers, the Blue Ridge Partnership for Health Science Careers is a collaboration of educators, employers, and economic development professionals in GO Virginia Region 2, which includes includes the areas of Roanoke, New River Valley, Alleghany and greater Lynchburg. This employer-led coalition follows a collective impact model to align and integrate actions of over 48 stakeholder groups, all striving to support the emerging health and life sciences sector. Carilion Clinic serves as the anchor organization, providing staff and overseeing efforts to improve health sciences education to meet the workforce needs in our region.

Timeline

Learn More About Us

2020

2021

2022

2023

2019

(Click each year above)

2019

Academic Task Force

2020

Created

2021

Jobs Inventory

2022

2023

Developed

Coalition

Established

Launched

Regional Outreach

State Budget Amendment

Secured for

Dual Enrollment Tuition

2021

2022

2023

2019

Statewide Network

Established

Executive Committee

Formed

2020

State Budget Amendment

Secured for

Dual Enrollment Tuition

First

2020

Quarterly

Meeting

2022

2023

2019

Course Inventory

Committees

Appointed

Completed

2021

2022

Advisory Conference

Hosted

2020

2021

2023

2019

Career Maps

Created

Website

Launched

Southern Virginia

Partnership

Logic Models

Developed

1st Annual

501c (4)

Non-Profit Status

Pastors'Network

Established

Student Ambassador Program

2020

Established

2021

Core Curriculum

2022

Developed

Diversity Committee

Created

2019

Advisory Conference

Hosted

2023

2nd Annual

501c (4)

Non-Profit Status

Pastors'Network

Established

Student Ambassador Program

2020

Established

2021

Core Curriculum

2022

Developed

Diversity Committee

Created

2019

Advisory Conference

Hosted

2023

2nd Annual

Secured state budget amendment for $1M (recurring) to Virginia Community College System to cover tuition for high school students dual-enrolled in LS & H courses at three community colleges.

$1

Million

(recurring funding)

Focus

Groups

Participated in statewide focus groups hosted by the Claude Moore Foundation, resulting in the establishment of a statewide network to facilitate resources and leverage collaborations.

Launched the BRPHSC website and made it available in five additional languages.

www.virginiahealthcareers.org

Developed charters, appointed chairs and co-chairs, and initiated gap analyses and projects for the five task forces

Click the image above for a closer look at our appointed committees.

Formed an executive committee and five task forces to address identified gaps and priorities.

Click the image above for a closer look at our board of directors.

George Mason University Center for Health Workforce

Partnered with George Mason University Center for Health Workforce to develop regional data sets for analysis.

Established the Diversity Committee as part of the organizational structure.

Diversity

Committee

Developed a core curriculum for degree-track health science in secondary education in Region 2 that meets state accreditation criteria and shared it with relevant authorities.

Education Partners

Logic

Models

Developed Logic Models to guide priorities for the Partnership and each committee.

Career

Maps

Began creating Career Maps for the seven most critically needed job clusters, graphically depicted as a "highway" with multiple on/off ramps and routes to reinforce the analogy that health careers are a journey.

Link to Completed Career Path Map

Formalized and named the business-led consortium of stakeholders as the Blue Ridge Partnership for Health Science Careers.

Hosted the first gathering of African-American pastors, mentors, and community leaders, offering personal development resources and an overview of the health science enterprise leading to the creation of an Ambassadors program to counsel career options.

Region 3

Helped to establish the Southern Virginia Partnership for Health Science Careers in GO Virginia Region 3 (based on the Blue Ridge model), providing stakeholders in that region with expertise and working documents.

Held the first Blue Ridge Partnership Executive Committee quarterly committee meeting.

Committee

First

Quarterly

Completed the Region 2 inventory of secondary and post-secondary courses for health sciences.

Region 2

Claude Moore Charitable Foundation

Received funding from the Claude Moore Foundation to support the expansion of LS & H courses within K-12 districts in Region 2.

Established the Partnership as a 501c (4), Non-Profit Organization.

501c (4)

Non-Profit

Regional

Outreach

Conducted regional outreach to public and private industry leaders and organizations to discuss the shortage of qualified health science workforce in the region and raised awareness about the workforce shortages in the health science sector, leading to collaboration among stakeholders.

Formed an ad hoc academic task force to conduct an initial inventory of academic courses available from secondary and post-secondary educational institutions in the region, serving as a starting point for further analysis of educational offerings.

Academic

Task Force

Health Careers in Demand in GO Virginia Region 2

Developed an inventory of the most critically needed health science jobs in Region 2 through interviews with stakeholder employers.

Coalition

Established a coalition of leaders from private sector health-related employers, workforce boards, and academic institutions.

Established

Student Ambassadors promote and serve as outreach partners in elevating the student perspective in building a coalition model approach to improving local workforce development, training, outreach and public health.

Hosted 2nd Annual Advisory Conference with expanded scope and participation.

Advisory

Conference

Hosted the inaugural Health Science Career Advisory Conference with over 140 high school and post-secondary counselors, job advisors, career coaches, and mentors in attendance.

$1.7

Million

Secured proposed state budget amendment for $1.7M to support a 2-year pilot covering tuition for high school students dual-enrolled in LS & H courses, which was approved but not funded due to COVID-19.

Student Ambassadors promote and serve as outreach partners in elevating the student perspective in building a coalition model approach to improving local workforce development, training, outreach and public health.

Established the Diversity Committee as part of the organizational structure.

Diversity

Committee

Developed a core curriculum for degree-track health science in secondary education in Region 2 that meets state accreditation criteria and shared it with relevant authorities.

Education Partners

Hosted the first gathering of African-American pastors, mentors, and community leaders, offering personal development resources and an overview of the health science enterprise leading to the creation of an Ambassadors program to counsel career options.

Established the Partnership as a 501c (4), Non-Profit Organization.

501c (4)

Non-Profit

Hosted 2nd Annual Advisory Conference with expanded scope and participation.