The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) has honored Bellarmine University for transformational leadership for the university’s summer bridge programming and awarded the university a grant that will help to expand the programming in
summer 2025 to include rising high school seniors who are interested in health care careers.
Bellarmine’s summer programs aim to prepare incoming students for success during their college experience, said Dr. John Blandford, assistant provost.
“Bridge to BU,” which began two years ago, is a free, five-week residential program for conditionally
admitted students in which they take three courses worth seven credit hours in one of four tracks tailored to specific majors and career goals. Following successful completion of the program, participants are fully admitted to Bellarmine.
The new non-residential Healthcare Career Summer Bridge Program, created in partnership with Norton Healthcare and free to participants, will build on the success of Bridge to BU, Blandford said.
A maximum of 20 rising high school seniors will engage in a one-week orientation and four weeks of credit-bearing courses, co-curricular/social activities and healthcare career activities this summer. In the fall, the high school seniors will be dual
enrolled at Bellarmine as
Norton Healthcare Scholars—an existing program that offers undergraduate nursing students up to $45,000
in tuition assistance in exchange for a post-graduation work commitment in Norton Healthcare facilities.
“In addition to giving students an academic leg up, these summer programs create a connection to our community and to each other,” Blandford said. “We know that increases their chances of succeeding in the fall and beyond and helps them
develop ‘soft skills’ such as interpersonal communication and collaboration that employers including Norton [Healthcare] tell us they especially value in Bellarmine graduates.”
Bellarmine was one of six Kentucky colleges and universities to win a Kentucky Student Success Award in Transformational Leadership at CPE’s annual Student Success Summit, held in Lexington earlier in February.
“I am so proud of these schools and individuals who exemplify what it means to be student-centered,” CPE President Aaron Thompson said in a news release. “Kentucky’s recent gains in enrollment, retention and degree attainment are
a testament to the work campuses are doing on the ground to support students and their unique needs, whether they be academic, financial or emotional.”
Bridge to BU was created in part in response to the impact that the pandemic had on high school students’ learning and social and emotional development. The program meets students where they are and provides additional support during the summer
and beyond.
Last summer, 32 of 34 students completed the Bridge to BU program, a 94 percent success rate, and all 32 enrolled at Bellarmine in the fall, Blandford said. Of those, 29 returned in the spring, a remarkable success story for students who would not otherwise
have had access to a Bellarmine education.
“We are very proud of the positive impact Bridge to BU has had by enabling students to make a successful transition from high school to college-level work and expectations,” Blandford said. “Students from Bridge to BU contribute a lot
to our community in and out of the classroom, and Bellarmine is a better university with them here.”
“This coming summer, we’re looking forward to building a new bridge specifically for nursing students, a program that will strengthen our partnership with Norton Healthcare and help meet a critical workforce need in our city and commonwealth.”
The Healthcare Career Summer Bridge Program will be supported by a $56,300 grant from CPE, which awarded a total of $529,801 to 12 colleges and universities in January for summer programs that provide opportunities for prospective college students to
explore health care careers.
As dual-enrolled students in the fall, the high school seniors will take classes on Bellarmine’s campus and can participate in job-shadowing experiences within Norton Healthcare.
“We are confident this program will inspire Kentucky’s high school students to pursue careers in health care and equip them with the academic and professional skills needed to succeed,” said Dr. Brittany Burke, a system director of Norton
Healthcare’s Institute for Education & Development.
The 2025 Healthcare Career Summer Bridge Program will run concurrently with but separately from Bridge to BU, from June 30 through July 31.