FRESNO - The Doctors Academy at Selma High School, which was founded by the UCSF Fresno Latino Center for Medical Education and Research, received a $50,000 grant from the Selma Healthcare District to support tutoring services for subjects such as math, science, and English.
This is the second year that the Selma Healthcare District has provided funding for the program.
The Doctors Academy was established by the UCSF Fresno Latino Center to encourage educationally disadvantaged students to focus on careers in health and medicine. The program prepares high school students to become competitive applicants to four-year universities by providing them with a rigorous academic program that includes experiences in research and clinical settings, service learning, and exposure to universities and colleges.
The UCSF Fresno Latino Center’s mission is to increase the diversity of the health workforce in the San Joaquin Valley through an educational pipeline program that partners with students, teachers and parents to aid students in their academic growth and encourage them to pursue professional careers in healthcare.
“Thanks to Selma Healthcare District, we are able to continue offering our students in the UCSF Fresno Selma High School Doctors Academy first-hand experience in the health professions, and enable them to attain their educational goals,” said Katherine A. Flores, MD, director of the UCSF Fresno Latino Center.
"The funding from the Selma Health Care District is intended to benefit our community. We hope the grant provided to the Doctors Academy at Selma High School will benefit the future of our community as we see the students explore the health care fields and return, as I did, to serve their hometown,” said Stan Louie, MD, a primary care physician in Selma and president of the Selma Healthcare District Board of Directors.
Funding from Selma Healthcare District also supports program staffing, including coordinators who provide academic coaching and plan and implement services for students as part of the Doctors Academy Program at Selma High School.
The UCSF Fresno Latino Center for Medical Education and Research, in partnership with Fresno Unified School District and Fresno County Office of Education, started the Sunnyside High School Doctors Academy in 1999 as a pilot program. A Junior Doctors Academy Program was established in 2000 to encourage and support students earlier in their academic career as middle school students. The Doctors Academy program has grown in popularity and scope. In 2007, Doctors Academy programs were established at Caruthers and Selma high schools.
The Selma Health Care District, originally formed in 1969, primarily supports the Selma community by providing grants that enhance availability and access to quality health care and promote health education and wellness.
The District has supported the Selma High School Doctors Academy, teen pregnancy education programs, high school health educator, diabetes education and lactation education. The District also partnered with the City of Selma to purchase ambulances and the Selma Unified School District to buy special access buses.
For more information, please contact Bertha Dominguez, education director at the UCSF Latino Center at 559-241-7670 or [email protected] or Mark Babiarz, principal, Selma High School, at 559-898-6550 or [email protected]
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