National Rural Health Day: expanding Pathways

The Pathways Program is one of the many ways the school district is helping Gunnison Valley students prepare for their future careers whether they are college-bound or not.

In support of National Rural Health Day, the student cohort in the Master of Behavioral Science in Rural and Community Health program at Western Colorado University met with educators to learn about the alternative education options available to students. Since 2011, the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health has set aside the third Thursday of every November to bring attention to and honor the efforts of rural health care providers, communities and organizations dedicated to addressing the unique needs of rural America.

For many years, the Gunnison Watershed School District has remained committed to offering diverse and student-centered educational experience to high schoolers. However, as college enrollment continues to decline across the country, there is a growing need to provide even more alternative educational opportunities. This equips students with the skills and experience needed to enter their chosen career field.

Rural communities often rely on local tradespersons and skilled laborers to fulfill the specific needs of the community. The school district’s Pathways Program has been filling that role for almost 10 years and continues to expand its offerings as the demand for alternative educational pathways increases.

“I believe very strongly that schools have a responsibility to prepare kids for the world post-high school,” said Pathways Program Director Chad Terry.

The Pathways Program began providing alternative options for students who didn’t fit the traditional high school or college-bound mold in 2016. Pathways is a district-wide program and reaches students in both Crested Butte and Gunnison. The students meet with their counselor and then coordinate with Terry to build out the program to support their individual needs and goals.

The Pathways Program enables high school students to pursue classes in nontraditional settings. Courses offered through the Pathways Program help students gain credit for graduation and explore different career interests such nursing, cooking, hair styling, interior design, land management, electrical services and veterinary medicine. The current opportunities, offered in partnership with several regional institutes and colleges, include internships, work study and online course options. Depending on the semester, 200-250 high school students are enrolled in this program.

Pathways participant and senior Kristen Isham knew that she wanted to work with kids, but discovered that she has a passion for special education through Pathways internships. She completed an internship at Gunnison Elementary School last year, and is doing another paid internship this year in a teaching role at the Lake School with preschool children that have special needs.

“With the experience, I should be able to start teaching pretty soon … It's helped me narrow down what I want to do,” Isham said.

Junior Kelly Eckert participates in Pathway’s certified nursing assistant (CNA) program in conjunction with Western Colorado University. She attends classes and clinicals at the nursing home in Gunnison.

“I really like the patient contact and CNA is the first step into the medical world,” she said. “Pathways in general is such a great opportunity. I love being able to leave the high school and come over, and it's very individualized … [We] have our own freedom and work at our own pace.”

Although the program has been active for several years, an expansion is underway as part of the district’s valleywide renovation project. Once complete, it will support greater health care training (specifically EMT and medical assistant programs), and tourism training (such as culinary arts and hospitality). Terry also met with local chamber of commerce directors and business owners to tailor the program offerings to the specific areas of interest for students.

Terry said he is excited about the opportunities for expansion that will be possible with the newly constructed space.

“By creating these physical spaces that can house these programs, we can then give kids the skills that they need to be successful post-high school,” he said.

(The first-year cohort of the Master of Behavioral Science in Rural Community Health at Western Colorado University includes Jenny Schartz, Kelsey Chrane, Natalie Pax, Haley Blomquist, Daylana Ferguson-Chaytors and Haley Wintsch. Learn more about the graduate program at western.edu.)