HCA Healthcare Strengthens Partnership with Tennessee State University

Health system donates $1.5 million to fund scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students pursuing careers in healthcare and computer science

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA), one of the nation’s leading healthcare providers, today announced that it will give $1.5 million to Tennessee State University (TSU) to create scholarship opportunities for students enrolled in the Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr. Institute and the Department of Computer Science within the College of Engineering. This gift is part of the organization’s larger commitment to give $10 million over three years to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). Since making the pledge in 2021, HCA Healthcare has announced approximately $5.25 million in donations towards multiple partnerships.

“We are proud of the long-standing relationship we have fostered with TSU,” said Sam Hazen, chief executive officer for HCA Healthcare. “By strengthening our partnership, we will be able to create additional opportunities for TSU students and further our commitment to advancing diversity in healthcare.”

Funds from this gift will support scholarships for students participating in the university’s Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr. Institute Accelerated Medical Pathway program. Three two-year scholarships for rising juniors and three two-year scholarships for graduate students within the College of Engineering will also be awarded. Through these scholarship programs, HCA Healthcare Scholars and HCA Healthcare ITG Scholars will be provided with hands on shadowing opportunities, mentors, seminars, leadership sessions, guest speakers and career guidance. HCA Healthcare will also offer dedicated internship opportunities in the ITG Pathways, Technical Resident and Part-Time Internship programs annually to TSU students.

“It is an honor to partner with TSU to support more students pursuing careers in healthcare and, in turn, helping to build a diverse talent pipeline of healthcare professionals,” said Sherri Neal, chief diversity officer of HCA Healthcare. “Increasing the diversity of our healthcare workforce is vital to providing equitable, culturally competent care to our communities.”

HCA Healthcare has a history of partnering with TSU. In 2015, HCA Healthcare gave $1 million to TSU to fund internship opportunities and support the growth of the Health Information Management program. Marty Paslick, chief information officer for HCA Healthcare, serves as an advisory board member for the College of Engineering where there are currently seven HCA Healthcare colleagues serving as adjunct faculty.

“We applaud and thank HCA Healthcare for this generous gift and continued support of TSU, and our talented students,” said Glenda Glover, president of Tennessee State University. “This investment in our students helps them to become the future doctors and health technology leaders they aspire to be. HCA Healthcare is making their dreams a reality.”

HCA Healthcare is committed to partnering with organizations to help develop a diverse pool of future healthcare leaders. Included among these partnerships is $750,000 to The University of Texas at El Paso to create multiple graduate-degree opportunities for students interested in healthcare careers. The company also gifted $1.5 million to Florida International University’s (FIU) Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences (NWCNHS) to expand its faculty, offer scholarships to increase enrollment and help address the national nursing shortage. In 2021, HCA Healthcare announced a $1.5 million investment in Florida A&M University’s (FAMU) School of Allied Health Sciences to strengthen students’ pathways from undergraduate to graduate to management careers in the healthcare industry. In 2019, the HCA Healthcare Scholars at Fisk University program was created to provide scholarships, career planning support and internship opportunities for high-achieving undergraduates. These partnerships and others with industry- and school-based associations are part of HCA Healthcare’s continued efforts to strengthen the diversity of the organization’s talent pipeline.

About HCA Healthcare

Nashville-based HCA Healthcare is one of the nation’s leading providers of healthcare services comprising 182 hospitals and approximately 2,300 ambulatory sites of care, including surgery centers, freestanding ERs, urgent care centers, and physician clinics, in 20 states and the United Kingdom. With its founding in 1968, HCA Healthcare created a new model for hospital care in the United States, using combined resources to strengthen hospitals, deliver patient-focused care and improve the practice of medicine. HCA Healthcare has conducted a number of clinical studies, including one that demonstrated that full-term delivery is healthier than early elective delivery of babies and another that identified a clinical protocol that can reduce bloodstream infections in ICU patients by 44%. HCA Healthcare is a learning health system that uses its more than 35 million annual patient encounters to advance science, improve patient care and save lives. Please click here to connect with HCA Healthcare on social media.

About Tennessee State University

Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a premier, historically black university and land-grant institution offering 39 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs, one education specialist degree, and eight doctoral degrees. TSU is a comprehensive research intensive institution with a R-2 Carnegie designation, and has a graduate school on its downtown Avon Williams Campus, along with the Otis Floyd Nursery Research Center in McMinnville, Tennessee. With a commitment to excellence, Tennessee State University provides students with a quality education in a nurturing and innovative environment that prepares them as alumni to be global leaders in every facet of society. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

All references to “Company,” “HCA” and “HCA Healthcare” as used throughout this document refer to HCA Healthcare, Inc. and its affiliates.