WINTERVILLE — ECU Health’s new Academic Loan Scholarship Program is helping strengthen the region’s health care workforce by giving Pitt Community College health sciences students a new way to pay for their education.

Designed to support individuals pursuing high-need health sciences degrees, the program offers eligible students from nearly a dozen PCC health sciences curricula $5,000 in financial assistance to offset educational expenses. In exchange, students must commit to working full time at ECU Health for one year after graduation.