Program Overview
Rural Community Health Scholars is a two-year program available to 75 of West Virginia’s health professions students from across the state who are interested in practicing in rural or underserved communities. Health professions students in the following disciplines are eligible to apply:
Clinical Mental Health Counseling, MA, MS resulting in LPC
Community Health Worker, CHW
Dental Hygiene, AS, BS
Dentistry, DDS, DMD
Exercise Physiology, BS
Medicine, MD, DO
Nursing, BSN, RN, NP
Nutrition/Dietetics, BS
Occupational Therapy, MOT, DOT
Pharmacy, PharmD
Physical Therapy, DPT
Physician Assistant, MPAS
Clinical and Counseling Psychology, MA/MS, PsyD, PhD
Public Health, MPH, PhD, DrPH
Social Work, MSW
Program Timeline
Year One: September 1 – May 1
Complete one 40-hour didactic module
Complete one 40-hour CBSE
Complete one 40-hour rural immersion (option to complete in year two instead)
Year Two: September 1 – May 1
Complete one 40-hour didactic module
Complete one 40-hour CBSE
Complete one 40-hour rural immersion (only if not already completed in year one)
Community-Based Student Experience
Scholars complete a 40-hour community-based experience in a rural or underserved area of West Virginia each year of the program where they gain hands-on interprofessional, community-based training.
Student Experiences are shaped to reflect Scholar interests and can take many forms:
Clinical rotation
Practicum
Community-based needs assessment
Shadowing
Community-engaged research
Online Learning Modules
Scholars complete a 40-hour online learning module each year of the program where they gain knowledge and skills that will support future practice in a rural or underserved area.
All Scholars will complete the Community Rural Immersion Module that includes an in-person, immersive community-based experience. This module can be completed in Year One or Year Two and counts for the 40-hour online learning module requirement for the year in which it is completed.
Core Topic Areas
All educational and training activities provided by the WV AHEC Rural Community Health Scholars Program are based upon these foundational eight core topic areas which serve as focal points for didactic module and community-based student experiences.
Interprofessional Education (also known as interdisciplinary training) supports a coordinated, patient-centered model of health care that involves an understanding of the contribution of multiple health care professionals.
Behavioral Health Integration promotes the development of integrated primary and behavioral health services to better address the needs of individuals with mental health and substance use conditions.
Cultural Competency seeks to improve individual health and build healthy communities by training health care providers to recognize and address the unique culture, language, and health literacy of diverse consumers and communities.
Practice Transformation aims to fully support quality improvement and patient centered care through goal setting, leadership, practice facilitation, workflow changes, measuring outcomes, and adapting organizational tools and processes to support team-based models of care delivery.
Social Determinants of Health also known as social drivers of health, focuses on five key areas that impact health: economic stability, education, social and community context, health and health care, and neighborhood and build environment.
Connecting Communities and Supporting Health Professionals aims to increase training and development of Community Health Workers (CHWs) and paraprofessionals to be the connectors who can serve as a liaison between health professionals and the community to facilitate access to service and improve individual and community health.
Virtual Learning and Telehealth seeks to improve virtual learning and telehealth via curricula and community-based experiential training.
Current and Emerging Health Issues focuses on the impact of new and relevant health challenges such as epidemics and natural disasters.
To Graduate the Program, Scholars Must Complete:
Two 40-hour community-based student experiences (CBSE): Experiential training provides Scholars with the opportunity to apply the content learned in the didactic module(s) in a practice setting. The CBSE must occur in an eligible rural service area in West Virginia. Experiences include clinical rotations and practicums with other experiences approved on a case-by-case basis based on the Scholars discipline and available opportunities. All active Scholars are required to complete one CBSE in Year One and one CBSE in Year Two 2 of the program.
Two 40-hour didactic education modules via SOLE including one Community Rural Immersion Experience (RIE): Didactic education consists of online learning modules that include lectures, reading, interprofessional discussion, and various activities. Modules focus on one or more of the eight core topic areas and how they apply to rural and medically underserved communities. Each module is designed to include 40 hours of content, and all active Scholars are required to complete one module per year for Year One and Year Two.
The Rural Immersion Experience allows students to interact with regional AHECs, community members, health professionals, interprofessional teams, and expert faculty as a unique healthcare challenge/topic is explored through the lens of underserved communities and cultures. The RIE will include both didactic and in-person components totaling 40 hours that will count as one of the two required 40-hour didactic modules.
Rural Immersion Experiences for the 2025-2026 Academic Year Are:
Food Insecurity, Nutrition and Mental Health, Sutton, WV, October 16-18, 2025
Rural Maternal Health, Lewisburg, WV, November 19-21, 2025
Aging in Rural America: Policy and Outreach, Charleston, WV, February 15-17, 2026
Increasing Quality Healthcare in Rural Communities, Williamson, WV, March 12-14, 2026
Food Insecurity and Nutrition in Rural Communities, Berkeley Springs, WV, April 16-18, 2026