TOLEDO, Ohio — Toledo Public Schools students already have the option of getting hands-on education focused on business, aviation, technology or natural science. Beginning this fall, pre-med will be a new option.
Renovations are complete at the Toledo Pre-Medical and Health Science Academy ahead of school starting in just a couple of weeks.
The pre-med academy is located in the old DeVilbiss High School. Around 70 students have enrolled already, all having an interest in the medical field. It's something the CEO of ProMedica, Randy Oostra, says will be crucial for our future.
"By 2030, we'll be short 138,000 physicians in our country; 1.2 million nurses short in the United States," he said.
But with opportunities like the TPS Pre-Medical and Health Science Academy coming to fruition, those numbers will hopefully decrease.
Superintendent Romules Durant said within one day of announcing the new magnet school, more than 100 students applied.
The school's curriculum focuses on biomedical science, pre-medicine, pre-nursing and other health science fields. Students who graduate from the academy will have the opportunity and credentials to begin an entry-level career in the medical field or choose to attend college and further their education.
"That's the goal in the role of education is one, to educate you; and two, to provide work opportunity to you; and three, for you to live within this location and what we do here in TPS," Durant said. "We have to become the solution for industry."
Students will also get to work directly with health care professionals from ProMedica throughout their four years of high school, as this is a partnership between TPS and Toledo Hospital. That's something one of the students already enrolled is looking forward to the most.
"I'm most excited to learn a lot of new things like medicine and going to college classes because it can help me graduate early and it can help me build my GPA up," 9th grader Aneres Harris said.
She applied the same day the announcement was made.
"I've always had the interest because there's a lot of people that's sick and there's a lot of diseases going around and stuff," Harris said. "And it's like a lot of people dying from gun violence. I've got people who died from gun violence. So, I really want to try to stop it and help people so we can save more lives."
Durant was able to tell WTOL 11 that the district has three more magnet schools in the works for the future. He couldn't say what those schools are, but did say they all relate directly to northwest Ohio.
While spots are filled for this upcoming school year at the Pre-Med and Health Science Academy, you can already apply for next year.