Launching a paid healthcare exploration program for Bay Area teens from low-income backgrounds

Note: This article originally appeared on making-waves.org and was republished on ridgelinepathways.org in June 2026. References to "Making Waves Education Foundation" were adjusted to "Ridgeline" since the Hands-On Health program is now a part of Ridgeline. Watch the 2026 Hands-On Health recap video here.

Four-day paid learning experience connects Contra Costa County students with skills, mentors, and high-wage healthcare careers

Ridgeline launched its Hands-On Health pilot, a new four-day, earn-and-learn experience designed to help Bay Area high school juniors and seniors explore in-demand healthcare careers while gaining hands-on skills, mentorship, and a stipend of up to $400.

The program is open to 11th and 12th graders who go to school or live in Contra Costa County and are from low-income backgrounds. It will run from March 25 to March 28, 2026, with evening sessions on Wednesday through Friday at the Community Youth Center, or CYC, in Concord, California, and a full-day experience on Saturday at the Kaiser Permanente School of Allied Health Sciences in Richmond.

The Ridgeline program offers students the opportunity to connect directly with healthcare professionals, build career-readiness skills, and tackle an authentic challenge in nuclear medicine, a specialized field of medical imaging that helps doctors visualize what is happening inside the body in real time.

Exploring healthcare careers that drive economic opportunity

“Hands-On Health is about opening doors to meaningful careers,” said Aiyana Mourtos (she/her), former chief program officer at Making Waves Education Foundation. “By offering paid opportunities that build skills and confidence, we’re helping students take steps toward long-term economic mobility.”

Healthcare is one of the fastest-growing industries in the Bay Area and across the nation, offering a range of well-paying, in-demand jobs that can be access through a range of degree and credential pathways, including bachelor’s and associate’s degrees and industry recognized credentials combined with clinical experience. Yet for many young people, these careers can feel out of reach due to limited exposure, experience, or connections.

The Hands-On Health program introduces students to career pathways within nuclear medicine – including roles like nuclear medicine technologist and radiation therapist – that offer both job security and strong earning potential. In the Bay Area, starting wages for these positions can exceed $145,000 annually and typically require completion of an associate or bachelor’s degree plus specialized certification.

Too often, high school students don't know what options exist beyond doctors and nurses in healthcare," said Daisy Han (she/her), former VP of career launch at Making Waves. "This program helps students explore those lesser-known but vital healthcare careers that can lead to family-sustaining wages and a strong sense of purpose."

Participation is open to high school juniors and seniors in the Bay Area’s Contra Costa County, and no prior experience or GPA requirement is needed. To remove barriers to participation, Making Waves will provide paid stipends.

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Blurring the lines between high school, college, and career

The launch of Hands-On Health is part of a vision to redesign the handoff between high school, college, and career. Historically, Making Waves focused on helping students from underrepresented backgrounds get to and through college with little to no debt. Today, Ridgeline is deepening its investment in bridging the gap between education and employment by integrating career-connected learning into both high school and college.

“We believe economic mobility comes from both education and career opportunities,” shared Patrick O’Donnell (he/him), former CEO at Making Waves Education Foundation. “That means equipping students not only with degrees, but with the work experience, durable skills, and networks to thrive in the workforce,” O’Donnell said.

With support from partners and funders, Ridgeline is building a new 11–14 pathway model that focuses on the last two years of high school and the first two years after graduation. Developed in partnership with employers, colleges, and high schools, the model aims to blur the lines between K–12, higher education and career by connecting exploration, work-based learning, and credential attainment into one coherent sequence that leads to high-wage jobs.

Programs like HealthX and Pathways to Health are testing how career exploration, durable skill-building, social capital development and industry-recognized credentials can help high school students envision and achieve meaningful careers. We're learning what it takes to build flexible, equitable pathways from high school into high-wage careers - and how those pathways can strengthen communities," O'Donnell shared.

As part of this broader approach, Hands-On Health offers an early on-ramp – a short, hands-on experience that introduces students to the healthcare field while they practice durable skills and build connections with professionals. For many students, it provides an entry point into deeper pathway experiences like the HealthX Fellowship, a six-month paid program that builds credentials, mentorship, and career preparation in partnership with the Kaiser Permanente School of Allied Health Sciences and Contra Costa College.

Together, these pilots are testing what it looks like to connect education and employment more seamlessly –giving students a clearer sense of purpose, real-world experience, and a direct path into high-demand, high-wage careers.

Special thanks to community and philanthropic partners

This program made possible thanks to the generous support of philanthropic funders, donors, and community partners, including the Workforce Development Board of Contra Costa County, the Payette River Foundation, Kaiser Permanente School of Allied Health Sciences, the Community Youth Center, and Earn and Learn.

“Partnerships make it possible for us to design programs that meet both student and employer needs,” shared Han. “By working together, we can create models that prepare young people for success and respond to the region’s growing workforce demands.”

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