Montevideo Medical Academy Serves High School Students for Rural Growth

(Learfield News/Montevideo, MN) The Montevideo Medical Academy is looking inward by bringing medical career training to its local high school.

Montevideo Public School Superintendent Wade McKittrick says their hospital and long-term care facilities have struggled to attract staff, but this offers a pipeline of talent. He says, “The more I thought, the more I started wondering, ‘Why couldn’t we do something—train our high school students while they’re in high school to be able to fill these positions?”

The program is in its second year, and students can earn college credits, certifications, and multiple hours of specialized clinical experience.

Montevideo High School Principal Tanya Maethner says another benefit is incentivizing young people to stay in their small town of just over 5,000 people, helping overcome “rural decline.”

She says, “A lot of times kids don’t even know what jobs are available in our smaller communities—getting them out into these spaces is opening their eyes.”

Maethner says program coordinators and counselors meet with every student who enters the program, not just to make sure they’re a good fit but also to help them understand the rigors of the training.