A healthcare system and three educational institutions in Springfield are working together to help meet the area’s future health needs.
On Tuesday, they announced the Alliance for Healthcare Education and formally signed agreements.
Alliance members are Coxhealth, Springfield Public Schools, Missouri State University and Ozarks Technical Community College. But that group is expected to grow in the future to include other healthcare systems and educational entities, including high schools.
Beginning in the fall of 2024, Springfield high school juniors and seniors will be able to earn their Associate of Arts in Bioclinical Sciences while finishing their high school diplomas.
SPS Superintendent Dr. Grenita Lahan said the new alliance will give students a jump start on entering the workforce in fields such as nursing, respiratory therapy and more.
“Ultimately, the alliance will create pipelines that will allow students early access to the industry and to professional opportunities,” she said.
As part of the change, Cox College will be fully integrated into the alliance. Current Cox College students will complete their programs. Over time, Cox College will transition its bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programs to MSU and its associate programs to OTC.
Missouri State President Clif Smart said their first cohort will begin in the fall of 2025. Last year, MSU had 4,280 students in the McQueary College of Health and Human Services. This year that number has increased to 4,476.
“We will grow exponentially faster by partnering with Cox, OTC and SPS to more efficiently and less expensively deliver healthcare education to our region,” Smart said.
CoxHealth President and CEO Max Buetow said ultimately the new alliance will have a positive impact on heatlhcare.
“Healthcare is a service dependent on the talented people that provide care,” he said, “and, so, the more talented people with a stronger education, the better our care will be in the community.”
Buetow said, while the nation as a whole is seeing a nurse shortage, Springfield area healthcare systems have made strides to recruit and retain staff. This alliance, he said, will help them stay ahead of the curve.
A news release states that, "when the partnership is fully realized, the Alliance will be the largest producer of health science professionals in the Midwest."
The alliance will be housed at Cox North, including space where Cox College is currently located. It will be established as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation owned by the four parties and will be administered by a governing board.
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