HEALTH SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ACADEMY (HSTA)

West Virginia University established the Health Sciences and Technology Academy (HSTA) in 1994. Designed for grades 8 -12, the math and science program encourages aspirations, opens doors, and empowers minority and underrepresented students and rural communities. HSTA offers a seamless approach to health sciences education that shepherds talented minority and underrepresented students through precollege, college and graduate training in health professions and programs.

Operating out of West Virginia University's Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center in Morgantown, HSTA educators work to increase the number of disadvantaged and African American high school students from West Virginia who pursue post-secondary education in the health sciences. Students will be encouraged to return to practice their careers in an underserved area in West Virginia.

The summer campus-based program offers hands-on science and math projects, led by middle and high school teachers trained by college faculty. Curriculum is mixed with leadership development, self-empowerment, communication skills, study skills and multicultural sensitivity.

During the academic year, middle and high school teachers conduct community service health projects that develop networking and communication skills, the ability to coordinate resources, and an individual and group sense of success in providing solutions to community problems.

AHEC will help to expand HSTA for underrepresented and disadvantaged students statewide by establishing an AHEC component to facilitate career paths from precollege to rural primary care practice. This objective includes the goals of affiliating with HSTA and public schools, identifying with other community resources, defining entry level skills, and developing community projects for precollege learners.