Tyee High School Health Professionals Program
Ninth-grader Mohamed Aided is thinking about becoming a physician. His classmate Iman Seid dreams of becoming an anesthesiologist. Hanai Letebo is set on nursing.
These students are part of the inaugural class of Tyee High School’s new Health Professionals Program. Their voices capture what redesign is about—helping each student see and step into the future they choose.
What stands out is not just the goal. It’s the feeling that the work has already started.
For students like Mohamed, Iman and Hanai, it’s a chance to explore healthcare careers early, learn by doing, and start mapping a path toward the future they want.
“The majority of our students do learn better when they use their hands,” says the program teacher, Nicole Dao. “Students will be looking at X-rays or learning how to read pulse, and a lot of our health care jobs are hands-on.”
The Health Professionals Program is built to support students as their interests evolve. By junior year, students choose the path they want to pursue—whether that’s continuing College in the High School coursework or earning a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) credential.
Programs like this reflect our commitment to innovative learning. Whether students plan to provide bedside care, work in diagnostics or become physicians, they are discovering what excites them, building confidence and preparing for the future they choose.
Partnering with the Healthcare Community
Transformation requires partners. Virginia Mason Franciscan Health, a leading health system in Washington state, is anchoring the program by opening hospital doors for students to:
- Attend workshops and field trips.
- Participate in job shadowing and volunteer programs.
- Receive mentorship and professional development.
- Complete hands-on clinical training for the Nursing Assistant pathway.
These experiences deepen learning. It also creates a pipeline of young professionals ready to serve in their own communities.
Part of our Secondary Redesign Work
The Health Professionals Program is part of our Secondary Redesign work to make middle and high school learning more relevant and more rigorous. Guided by feedback from students, families and staff, we are focusing on real-world learning and stronger instruction so every student is known by name, strength and need—and graduates prepared for the future they choose.
Learn more about Secondary Redesign and our Priority Area work