Inside a Birmingham City School’s Pathway to Professional Nursing

By Keisa Sharpe-Jefferson | The Birmingham Times Maria Manuel, a ninth-grade student at Huffman High School, wants to be an ultrasound technician. “The most interesting thing I learned in this program is about the diet, what people are not supposed to eat, what they can eat, and what’s not healthy for them,” Manuel said. Jasmyne Miles, also a ninth grader at Huffman, really enjoys the “hands-on” aspect of learning about nursing and literally lit up as she explained why she wants to be a pediatric nurse. “I realized that I found more pleasure in taking care of younger kids, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, I have to take up health care,’” Miles said. “I’m like, ‘This is something that’s really for me,’ and it was such a passion.” Manuel and Miles are just a few of the students in Huffman High School’s Academy of Health Science magnet program who are learning the nursing industry with exposure to hands-on, professional experience. And that, said Birmingham City Schools (BCS) Superintendent Mark Sullivan, Ed.D., will prove invaluable to the “diverse group of students” enrolled in the program. “One of things we know in the health care field is that people feel...