By Jenny Varner
Vice President, External Affairs
Davidson-Davie Community College

THOMASVILLE -- Davidson-Davie Community College today announced the creation of the largest healthcare apprenticeship in North Carolina, with Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist signing on as the college’s first healthcare partner. Under the new agreement, students will be able to work in a healthcare profession while taking courses related to their career goals.

The partnership between Davidson-Davie and Wake Forest Baptist will include Medical Assisting, Medical Laboratory Technology, Nursing, Licensed Practical Nursing, Pharmacy Technology, Central Sterile Processing, Surgical Technology, and Nurse Aide. The college will work with other healthcare partners to establish apprenticeships in Health Information Technology, EMT, and Paramedic.

“We are thrilled to be able to offer our students – and future students – an incredible array of opportunities within the healthcare sector, through which they can pursue an educational pathway toward their chosen career while also having a stable income,” said Holly Myers, dean of health sciences at Davidson-Davie. “And not only that, but we are supporting the healthcare workforce and the communities in which we live by educating new professionals to fill much-needed jobs.” 

This partnership builds off the success of the 2021 collaboration between Davidson-Davie and Wake Forest Baptist to launch the state’s first Registered Nurse apprenticeship program. Today’s announcement expands apprenticeship opportunities to other critical healthcare fields.

“As the region’s only academic learning health system, a large part of our mission is to help train the next generation of health care professionals,” said Kimberly Stanbery, DNP, chief nursing officer at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Davie Medical Center and Wake Forest Baptist’s Comprehensive Cancer Center. “We are so pleased to collaborate on such an important program and give people in our community the necessary education and skills to serve in a wide variety of health care roles.”

Davidson-Davie is one of 58 community colleges across North Carolina and worked through the statewide ApprenticeshipNC program to develop the new opportunities.

“The NC Community College System (NCCCS) is pleased to see Davidson-Davie Community College expand opportunities to the next generation of healthcare workers through Registered Apprenticeship Programs at Wake Forest Baptist,” said Dr. Bruce Mack, VP of Economic Development at NCCCS. “Combining the related classroom instruction with on-the-job learning benefits all parties and will help Wake Forest Baptist develop a well-qualified and experienced talent bank of much needed healthcare workers. ApprenticeshipNC is proud to be a part of this exceptional program.”

Although the number of spots available for apprentices is limited, there are plans to increase available spots over the next few years. To be eligible, students must be 18 years of age, pass a drug screen and background check, and meet all the entry requirements for the educational program. Interested applicants should start by completing the college application process.

“This apprenticeship program is an excellent example of the novel and innovative strategies needed to begin the important work of rebuilding our workforce,” said Deb Harding, DNP, vice president and regional chief nurse executive at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. “Staffing shortages exist among all disciplines and ancillary support roles. This unique partnership not only offers structure that supports and grows the pipeline of health care learners but affords the unique opportunity to engage in new thoughts regarding models of care design and leverage the academic learning health system.

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Davidson-Davie Community College (www.DavidsonDavie.edu), which incorporated Davie County into its name in 2021, is a fully accredited, multi-campus college where students of all ages and backgrounds pursue academic and career-focused education in order to build successful futures. As one of 58 institutions within the North Carolina Community College System, Davidson-Davie offers more than 40 degree and professional certificate programs, as well as affordable college-credit coursework to students who plan to transfer to four-year schools. With a mission to serve the changing needs of students competing in a global environment, Davidson-Davie is committed to quality education, innovative and equitable learning experiences, training, and support across a wide range of 21st-century career fields. 

Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist (www.wakehealth.edu) is a pre-eminent academic health system based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and part of Atrium Health Enterprise. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist’s two main components are an integrated clinical system – anchored by Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, an 885-bed tertiary-care hospital in Winston-Salem – that includes Brenner Children’s Hospital, five community hospitals, more than 300 primary and specialty care locations and more than 2,700 physicians; and Wake Forest University School of Medicine, the academic core of Atrium Health Enterprise and a recognized leader in experiential medical education and groundbreaking research that includes Wake Forest Innovations, a commercialization enterprise focused on advancing health care through new medical technologies and biomedical discovery. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist employs more than 20,000 teammates, part of Atrium Health’s 70,000 teammates across the Southeast. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist provided a record-setting $611.2 million in community benefits during the 2021 fiscal year, which includes unreimbursed care, charity care, education and research, and community health improvement. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.