Central Oregon Awards $224K for Rural Health Students

Students in rural Central Oregon no longer have to choose between affording college and pursuing careers that could save lives in their communities.

Central Oregon Community College just secured a $224,532 grant from the Central Oregon Health Council to cover tuition for over 50 students in healthcare programs. The scholarships support students studying nursing, public health, behavioral health, and medical assisting through November 2030.

The timing couldn't be better. Oregon added 15,000 healthcare jobs in 2024 but still has 18,800 vacant positions, with rural areas hit hardest.

The new funding builds on an earlier $300,000 grant from the Oregon Health Authority that's already helping 100 COCC students. Together, these scholarships award between $500 and $5,000 per student, with priority given to those planning to work in Health Professional Shortage Areas like the Warm Springs Reservation and much of Central Oregon.

Students aren't just getting tuition help. The grant also pays for field placements where they can earn money while gaining hands-on experience, making healthcare careers more accessible to those who need to work during school.

COCC recently expanded its Madras campus to offer complete nursing and medical assisting programs closer to rural students. The campus opened last month, bringing career training directly to communities that need healthcare workers most.

The Ripple Effect

This investment does more than help individual students graduate debt-free. It's training healthcare workers who already understand rural communities because they're from them.

Students who receive these scholarships are more likely to stay and work in the areas where they grew up, creating a sustainable solution to the healthcare shortage. When a nursing student from Madras doesn't have to move to Portland for training, they're more likely to bring their skills back home.

The grant also funds expanded health sciences programming at Jefferson County high schools, planting seeds for the next generation of rural healthcare workers.

"Central Oregon Health Council will change the trajectory of many lives with this support," said Zak Boone, COCC's vice president for college advancement. He's right, but it's not just the students' lives that will change.

Every scholarship recipient could become the nurse who delivers a baby, the behavioral health specialist who helps someone through crisis, or the public health worker who keeps a rural community healthy.

Interested students can explore scholarship options at cocc.edu/departments/financial-aid, and COCC's spring term begins March 30.