Published Monday, April 24th, 2023
The Rural Health Opportunities Program (RHOP) is designed to help fill the need for health care providers in rural Nebraska.
Wayne State College announces that 48 students have been chosen for the highly selective Rural Health Opportunities Program (RHOP) for Fall 2023.
Students selected for the program come from rural Nebraska, know the unique needs of their community, and are dedicated and passionate about their home state and its rural health care needs. RHOP represents that commitment and prepares students to return to rural Nebraska and care for its citizens.
“I’m excited to welcome this class of RHOP students,” said Dr. Ron Loggins, Dean of the School of Science, Health, and Criminal Justice at Wayne State. “Our RHOP scholars are among the most academically talented and dedicated students in Nebraska. Wayne State is proud to help prepare them for their careers in health care. At Wayne State, not only do students engage in a rigorous curriculum, but they also benefit from the close advising and mentoring our faculty and staff provide. We are confident that when students graduate from our science programs, they have a solid foundation and are prepared to succeed.”
RHOP’s benefits include a full-tuition scholarship at Wayne State and guaranteed admission to UNMC. RHOP participants pursue their studies at WSC and UNMC, with the amount of time at each institution determined by the program in which they are enrolled. Students who apply for the program must be a rural Nebraska resident.
RHOP participating fields include Dental Hygiene, Dentistry, Medical Lab Science, Medicine, Nursing, Occupational Therapy (new since Fall 2022), Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant, and Radiography.
Students selected for RHOP for Fall 2023:
Dental Hygiene
Cailey Faust of York
Addisyn Wendte of Dakota City
Casidy Wortman of Creighton
Dentistry
Jaxson Bernecker of Hartington
Ava Borgman of Norfolk
Brogan Foote of Wayne
Paige Kossmann of Battle Creek
Austin Mattson of Fremont
Emery Obermiller-Snyder of Grand Island
Scout Simmons of Amherst
Medicine
Michael Cohee of West Point
Zackary Corey of Grand Island
Carter Franzen of Fremont
MaKenna King of Walthill
Ellis Livingston of Gordon
Carter Moss of Plattsmouth
Kilee Thorell of Wausa
Mason Timmerman of Norfolk
Tyson Weber of Columbus
Nursing
Wyatt Ashburn of Wayne
Taya Engel of Wolbach
Brynn Grassmeyer of Kearney
Paw Eh Htoo of Norfolk
Lily Jessen of Bloomfield
Rebecca Leader of Crofton
Marli Stones of Crete
Emily Wellman of Columbus
Occupational Therapy
Dakota Guthrie of North Platte
Anslee Langrehr of Saint Libory
Jacelyn Rutherford of Hordville
Lillie Timm of Pender
Pharmacy
Ella Broekemeier of Osmond
Garret Buschkamp of Crofton
Jack Cooper of Hickman
Ally Drahota of Madison
Mikayla Hammers of Gretna
Ella Johnson of Gretna
Paul Littlefield of Surprise
Sadie Ringlein of Kearney
Physical Therapy
Rylan Boellstorff of Auburn
Claire Ortgiesen of Wilcox
Physician Assistant
Taylor Anderson of Fullerton
Erin Avery of Wayne
Libni Roldan Perez of Norfolk
Radiography
Rylie Bonneau of Thurston
Haley Hellwege of Boelus
Sonja Schultz of Beemer
Margaret Svec of David City
Wayne State constantly explores new possibilities for health care partnerships in addition to RHOP to ensure students have a wide variety of fields from which to choose.
“In the last few years, Wayne State created a new pathway to nursing with UNMC, a dual-degree nursing pathway with Creighton, an early admission program with Kansas City University for the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine and Doctor of Psychology programs, and many others,” Loggins said. “While the pandemic was raging, Wayne State stayed true to its mission and continued to serve the students of Nebraska. Together with our partners, we designed new, exciting curriculum and program pathways that will prepare students for current and future workforce challenges.”
Learn more about RHOP at www.wsc.edu/rhop and Wayne State nursing programs at www.wsc.edu/nursing-programs.
Located in Wayne, Neb., Wayne State College is a proud member of the Nebraska State College System.