Pima Medical Institute along with The San Marcos Promise were named finalists in The San Diego Business Journal’s 2022 Nonprofit & Citizenship Awards.
Pima Medical has been developing community partnerships since the birth of the medical career college in 1972. This honor further illustrates Pima Medical’s dedication to the communities it serves and its belief in the importance of public/private partnerships like the one it shares with The San Marcos Promise.
Back In 2018, Pima Medical formalized its partnership with the San Marcos School District and nonprofit, The San Marcos Promise. A non-traditional partnership, Pima Medical provides two High School Coordinators who work daily with students from two traditional high schools and one alternative high school in North San Diego County. These coordinators support an already busy team of school counselors. From financial literacy workshops, to job interview skills, the High School Coordinators provide a vital resource to students and parents alike.
In addition, Pima Medical, in conjunction with The San Marcos Promise and the San Marcos Unified School District, recently launched a Veterinary Assistant program at Twin Oaks High School. Aimed at providing students with a clear pathway from high school to higher education, the program creates an opportunity for graduates to transfer credits into Pima Medical’s veterinary sciences programs. However, it is not only aimed at students whose path includes continued education. The program provides the quality education for which Pima Medical Institute is known. That means students who successfully complete this program can enter the workforce more quickly.
Twin Oaks is also home to the new Pima Medical Future Center. The Center is focused on providing students a chance to see themselves in a career after high school. The center offers Virtual Reality career and college tours as well as a Career Closet for students in need of business attire for interviews. Students can even set up interviews with Pima Medical’s High School Coordinators for help as they make their post-graduation decisions.
“The importance of public/private partnerships like ours cannot be overstated,” said John Hanson, Chief Operating Officer, Pima Medical Institute. “Whether a student ultimately chooses Pima Medical, another higher education institution or goes directly into the job market, we want students to be prepared and armed with the tools to succeed in life-after-high school.”
The mission of Pima Medical is to improve the quality of people’s lives by providing the best value in medical career education, and this partnership is a natural match.
“We are thrilled that we can be the bridge bringing private and public entities together for the benefit of our students and our community at large,” said Lisa Stout, Executive Director of The San Marcos Promise. “Each one of our students deserves the opportunity to discover their interests and acquire the skills to thrive in the 21st Century workforce. It is up to us to make the investment in our young people and provide them with the needed resources and social capital to ensure their options for higher education are accessible.”
The San Marcos Promise partnership, while one of the first for Pima Medical, is most certainly not the only one. The medical career college has active partnerships throughout Arizona, Montana and Washington State.
Visit these websites for more information on the San Marcos Promise or Pima Medical Institute.
