Salt Lake City, UT -- (ReleaseWire) -- 03/09/2021 --Intermountain Healthcare has funded $495,000 in scholarships as part of its Diversity in Healthcare Scholarships initiative. Intermountain dispersed the contribution to Utah's public higher education schools, including:

- Bridgerland Technical College
- Davis Technical College
- Granite Technical Institute
- Mountainland Technical College
- Salt Lake Community College
- Utah State University Blanding
- Utah Valley University
- University of Utah
- Weber State University

A recent Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute report projects that Utah's population will continue to grow more racially and ethnically diverse, with minorities increasing to account for 35 percent of Utah's population by 2065.

"Our community is becoming increasingly diverse. It is essential to focus on training and recruiting a more diverse nursing and health administration population so they can help provide culturally appropriate care ensuring all our patients feel safe, welcome, and at ease," said Mikelle Moore, Intermountain's Senior Vice President and Chief Community Health Officer.

Intermountain's Human Resources, Recruiting, and Office of Diversity and Inclusion Teams have collaborated with Utah's public colleges and universities since 2014 to create opportunities for scholarships to be awarded to a diverse population of students to help them achieve their degrees pass licensure exams.

"It is with great appreciation we award seven Intermountain's scholarships to culturally diverse students at SLCC. We value diversity and realize Salt Lake Community College has a rich background of diverse students," said Erica Koch Wight, Dean of School of Health Sciences, Salt Lake Community College. "SLCC understands the importance of our students and the community's student represent. Graduates and alumni in the nursing program benefit from Intermountain Healthcare's generosity and bring to their nursing career a set of immeasurable skills."

Wight noted that one of the recipients in 2020-2021 stated, "I wouldn't be able to attend college without my scholarship - I wouldn't even be able to take one class each semester. I support my children and myself on my own and I have just enough to pay the bills and provide the basic needs for my children. I have been fortunate to be provided with the opportunity to attend college with help from my scholarship and financial aid. I am humbled by the aid I have received and I want Intermountain Healthcare to know it is not being wasted."

SLCC and its nursing students thanked Intermountain for their generosity as they are changing lives not only of patients, but of students.

Since the inception of its Diversity in Healthcare Scholarship Initiative, Intermountain has contributed more than $2.2 million to support healthcare students throughout the state with their education.

"Our ongoing scholarships align with Intermountain's unifying mission of helping people live the healthiest lives possible.® We can improve health as we aim to be a fully inclusive organization, and we value diverse backgrounds and experiences in our caregivers, patients, members, suppliers, and communities," said Mikelle Moore.

Intermountain seeks to remove barriers that prevent underserved populations from obtaining the education required for open positions at Intermountain with its Diversity in Healthcare Scholarship initiative.

About Intermountain Healthcare
Intermountain Healthcare is a not-for-profit system of 24 hospitals, 215 clinics, a Medical Group with 2,500 employed physicians and advanced practice clinicians, a health insurance company called SelectHealth, and other health services in Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. Intermountain is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes and sustainable costs.