Chamberlain University will spend $150,000 over three years to introduce Cincinnati teenagers to nursing careers long before they are old enough to enroll.

The nursing school and its parent company, Covista, announced the partnership with The Health Collaborative on Aug. 20 at a ribbon cutting for Chamberlain's new Cincinnati campus at 5905 E. Galbraith Road in the Kenwood Collection in Sycamore Township. The donation will fund year-long healthcare career exploration programs at local youth centers for middle and high school students.

The target: students who haven't considered healthcare.

"When students can meet real healthcare professionals and get hands-on experience early, it changes what they believe is possible for themselves," Deirdre Beluan, chief executive officer of The Health Collaborative, said at the event.

The Health Collaborative is a Cincinnati-based nonprofit whose members include 30 hospitals and health systems along with long-term care facilities and community partners. Its Workforce Innovation division focuses on expanding healthcare career exploration for middle and high school students across the region, convening more than 170 regional and statewide entities.

The nonprofit already runs TAP Health, a career-pipeline program for high school students launched in 2011. The program has served 928 students to date, and its most recent class enrolled 105 students from 34 regional high schools. More than 92% of TAP Health graduates plan to pursue healthcare because of the program, according to the organization.

The new Chamberlain-funded programs are separate from TAP Health and will reach a younger group through youth centers rather than high school classrooms.

The partnership comes as the region faces a steep nursing shortage. Greater Cincinnati recorded nearly 50,000 healthcare job openings last year, with six open healthcare jobs for every healthcare graduate, according to the Covista Care Capacity Monitor, a 2026 survey fielded by Gallup. Covista is Chamberlain's parent company.

Chamberlain's Cincinnati campus occupies roughly 32,000 square feet on the Kenwood Collection's third floor. Sycamore Township trustees approved the use unanimously on March 3, capping enrollment at 450 students across three cohorts. The campus is Chamberlain's 25th location nationwide, and its first cohort of Cincinnati students began classes Aug. 31.

Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus declared Aug. 20 "Chamberlain University Day" in Hamilton County. Ohio House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn also spoke at the ribbon cutting.

No specific launch date has been announced for the youth-center programs funded by the partnership.