It will take almost two years for the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences (ASHS) to take shape on a 10-acre site in the Black Belt city of Demopolis, but the lasting impact is expected to be immeasurable.

State and national leaders joined educators, healthcare professionals, philanthropists and local officials Oct. 14 to break ground on the future ASHS

"Bringing this specialty school here is no doubt the most significant investment in West Alabama in decades," said Gov. Kay Ivey. "But it's much more than that. The Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences will help more Alabama students open the door to their future. It will bring more men and women into the healthcare workforce. It will change the trajectory of rural healthcare in our state."

Scheduled to open in August 2027, ASHS will be a residential high school campus available for students from across Alabama starting in the 9^th grade. The first freshman class will actually begin next year at a temporary campus at the University of West Alabama in Livingston.

Students will live and learn together in a residential environment, emphasizing hands-on training, industry-recognized certifications and direct access both to higher education and immediate healthcare careers.

In addition to state funding, the project is supported by $26.4 million from Bloomberg Philanthropies.

"This school represents an extraordinary partnership among state and local leaders, educators, healthcare providers and philanthropy all united around a shared goal preparing young people for good jobs and great lives," said Kate Herman, program officer over healthcare initiatives at Bloomberg Philanthropies.

"Since 2016 we've committed hundreds of millions of dollars to reimagining what pathways for our young people can look like and how they can lead directly to meaningful careers," she said. "Out of that work came a big idea: What if we build high schools that prepare students for careers in healthcare from day one? Because the reality is we face two challenges that are deeply connected. First, our nation is experiencing a critical shortage of healthcare workers – from nurses to lab techs to medical assistants – and that shortage is being felt most acutely in rural areas like this one. Second, too many young people are leaving high school without a clear plan to a family-sustaining career. This school and others like it are designed to solve both challenges at once."

The Demopolis school is one of several in a network Bloomberg Philanthropies is investing $250 million to help create. There are already 2,000 students enrolled with an eventual capacity of 8,000.

"I believe genuinely that what starts here in Demopolis will help to change both education and healthcare in the country," Herman said.

Spearheading the effort to get the school off the ground is the ASHS Foundation.

Jill Stork is the Western Division vice president for Alabama Power and serves as vice chair of the ASHS Board of Trustees.

"I am thrilled to see the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences take root in Demopolis," Stork said. "This institution is a beacon of growth and opportunity for Alabama's Black Belt region and will significantly enhance rural healthcare by bringing much-needed resources and innovation. It will play a pivotal role in shaping the future workforce of our state, equipping young minds with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in healthcare careers."

The Demopolis campus site is located next to Whitfield Regional Hospital, ASHS's primary medical partner. UAB is also supporting the school and at the ground breaking, Gov. Ivey announced that that Demopolis native Dr. Selwyn Vickers has agreed to serve as special advisor to ASHS and the ASHS Foundation. Vickers has served since 2022 as president and CEO of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) in New York, recognized as one of the world's leading cancer centers.

Final decisions on healthcare focus areas and curricula are expected soon, paving the way for faculty and staff recruitment.

Dr. Jimmy Martin has been named the president of ASHS.

"When you enter education, you want to make a difference. All educators want to make a difference," Martin said. "You rarely have an opportunity to be a part of something that's transformational and this is truly transformational."

It will be the fourth free, state-supported residential specialty school under the Alabama Department of Education, joining high-performing programs in fine arts, math/science, and cyber technology/engineering. It is the only school in Bloomberg Philanthropies' national 10-school partnership being built entirely from the ground up.

Brasfield & Gorrie serves as the general contractor, with design by Caldwell Architects.

Sen. Bobby Singleton, Alabama Senate minority leader and senator of the district that includes the new school, was a strong advocate for locating the school in Demopolis.

"I'm overjoyed. It's been a long time coming and I know what we were up against. We had to compete with other communities to get this," he said. "People were counting the Black Belt out, saying we were poor, we don't have the talent base, we don't have the resources to do it. We won out and we're going to show out."

Singleton said he expects ASHS to shine in Demopolis.

"I believe what we've done here is going to be transformational and we're going to be able to touch kids from all over, across the state of Alabama – hopefully not just Alabama, but national and also international – to be able to come to this school, to be able to get a health science education and to be able to go back to their community and utilize the healthcare education," he said.

Demopolis Mayor Woody Collins agreed.

"Demopolis and West Alabama have always been known for farming, for manufacturing, different types of farming – row crops, catfish, all of these different things," he said. "But folks, from this day forward we're going to be known as the educational centerpiece of not only Alabama, but the United States.