Brescia University announced at the September Greater Owensboro Chamber Rooster Booster their potential Physician Assistant Program. This developing program is a partnership between the University, HealthForce Kentucky, and Owensboro Health.
Brescia University Physician Assistant Program has applied for Accreditation – Provisional from the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA). Brescia University Physician Assistant Program anticipates matriculating its first class in August 2026, pending achieving Accreditation – Provisional status at the March 2026 ARC-PA meeting. Accreditation – Provisional is an accreditation status granted when the plans and resource allocation, if fully implemented as planned, of a proposed program that has not yet enrolled students appear to demonstrate the program’s ability to meet the ARC-PA Standards or when a program holding accreditation-provisional status appears to demonstrate continued progress in complying with the Standards as it prepares for the graduation of the first class (cohort) of students.
Dr. Lauren McCrary, Ed.D., Brescia University Executive Vice President/Chief of Staff said of the accreditation process, “We’ve come so far in this process, but we still have the necessarily challenging accreditation to navigate. Our main goal right now is to finish staffing the program with the right people to make sure we graduate students who are knowledgeable, confident, and practice their skills with a servant’s heart. We are off to an amazing start with our program and medical director coupled with the facilities that HealthForce Kentucky has made accessible.”
Brescia University welcomed Blair Whitaker, MPAS, PA-C, as Program Director of their developing program. She received a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a minor in Psychology from the University of Kentucky. She attended Grand Valley State University for her physician assistant education, receiving a Master of Physician Assistant Studies. Whitaker is a nationally certified physician assistant and is licensed to practice medicine in Kentucky, Indiana, and Georgia. She was hired as the first faculty member for Sullivan University’s PA Program and later went on to work at South University – Savannah and the University of the Cumberlands Northern Kentucky Campus.
The University also welcomed Dr. Brent Hayden, MD as Medical Director. Dr. Hayden graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. He completed his residency at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in psychiatry and internal medicine, where he also did a fellowship in infectious disease. Dr. Hayden is affiliated with Owensboro Health Regional Hospital.
Last year Brescia University received startup funding from HealthForce Kentucky to support the new PA program. HealthForce Kentucky is an effort to inspire careers in health care by providing wider access to the highest levels of instruction and technology. This unique collaboration involves nine colleges and universities along with numerous school districts across 16 counties in Western Kentucky.
“Brescia University proposed to HealthForce Kentucky an excellent and innovative plan to create a much-needed Physician Assistant program,” said HealthForce Kentucky Chancellor Bart Darrell. “Our team and Board of Directors are proud to collaborate with Brescia to do the work necessary to make the program a reality. Bringing a high caliber Physician Assistant program to Owensboro will make a strong healthcare network in our region even stronger, as well as make Owensboro and surrounding communities an even more attractive place to live and work.”