Officials of the schools say that the Ontario campus is designedto meet the needs of an area where population growth and anexplosion of new medical office space are creating a need foradditional skilled medical professionals. Says David Pyle,president and CEO of American Career College and West CoastUniversity, "We are responding to Southern California hospital andhealthcare center officials who are telling us they are in themidst of a dramatic shortage of healthcare professionals,particularly in the area of nursing."

The Ontario campus will be the largest of five campuses operatedby American Career College and West Coast University, which alreadyhave campuses in Los Angeles, Orange County and Norco. Specializedprograms offered in the first phase of the new ACC Ontario campuswill include medical assisting, pharmacy technician, diagnosticmedical sonography, optical dispensing, massage therapy and medicalbilling.

Future phases of the Ontario campus will offer an AssociateDegree in Nursing program through West Coast University, making itone of the first postsecondary schools in the Inland Empire tooffer an LVN-to-RN bridge program, Pyle notes. The LVN-to-RN bridgeprogram is planned for the second phase of the new campus.