Berkshire Ahec

What Berkshire Ahec does

Berkshire Area Health Education Center (Berkshire AHEC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit health workforce organization founded in 1979 and headquartered at 397 Main Street, Dalton, Massachusetts. It operates as one of six AHECs in Massachusetts and is a chartered member of the MassAHEC Network, which is sponsored by the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Massachusetts Medical School; it is also a member of the National AHEC Organization, a national network of more than 220 AHECs. Berkshire AHEC's mission is to advance access to high-quality healthcare and healthy lifestyles through academic and community partnerships in Berkshire County and the broader New England region.

The organization's core product surface is structured around three training pillars and one public-health program. Its Medical Interpreter Training is a 60-hour fundamentals course that prepares bilingual individuals to interpret in clinical settings and prepare for national certification; the program is offered at a $45 registration fee. Continuing Education programming delivers inter-professional, evidence-based courses approved by ANA Massachusetts (ANCC-accredited), NAADAC, and NBCC (ACEP No. 5585), issuing credits accepted across nursing, social work, mental health, addiction counseling, and psychology professions. The Health Scholars' Program is a one-year interdisciplinary curriculum delivered in collaboration with Berkshire Community College and UMass Chan Medical School, serving students in nursing, physical therapist assistant, respiratory care, and community health worker tracks through the Moodle LMS. The Tobacco Free Community Partnership, funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, supports municipal tobacco control, youth vaping prevention, and cessation initiatives. Conference management and hosting is offered as a fee-based service for external organizations.

Commercially, Berkshire AHEC is sustained primarily by institutional grants and contracts, with HRSA (Grant No. U77HP03016), the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health identified as the major funding sources. Earned revenue comes from per-course registration fees (with some CE programs offered free of charge) and conference management services. Distribution is hybrid: a WordPress-based self-serve registration portal handles individual enrollment, while institutional programming is delivered through partnerships with Berkshire Community College, UMass Chan Medical School, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center, Berkshire Health Systems, the Spiritual Competency Academy, and the Berkshire District Medical Society. Berkshire AHEC is certified by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office as a W/NPO (women-run nonprofit) and is governed by a Board of Directors led by Co-Presidents Whitney Smith and Katrina Mattson, with a six-person staff headed by Executive Director Gena DiSimoni Johnson.

Name

Berkshire Ahec

Legal name

Berkshire AHEC, Inc.

Website

https://www.berkshireahec.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Berkshire AHEC is a Dalton, Massachusetts-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1979 that provides continuing education for healthcare professionals, 60-hour medical interpreter training, a Health Scholars program with Berkshire Community College, and tobacco cessation programming, serving clinicians, students, and community organizations across Berkshire County and New England.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Workforce Education and Training

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Technical and Trade Schools (6115), Administration of Public Health Programs (923120)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Healthcare Clinical Professions (CME/CE for Nurses, Allied Health, Pharmacy) (EDAAALAC)

Keywords

• Healthcare workforce training
• Medical interpreter education
• Continuing professional education
• Public health programs
• Health career pathways

Headquarters

HQ city

Dalton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Continuing Education Fees: Revenue generated from course registration fees for continuing education programs, medical interpreter training, and professional development courses offered to healthcare professionals
2. Government Grants and Funding: Major funding provided by Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), University of Massachusetts Medical School, and Massachusetts Department of Public Health

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Berkshire AHEC delivers healthcare workforce education and training, including a 60-hour medical interpreter training program, accredited continuing education courses for nurses, social workers, and mental health professionals, a one-year Health Scholars Program for health career students delivered with Berkshire Community College, and the Tobacco Free Community Partnership public health initiative. It also provides conference management and hosting services for healthcare events.

Product overview

Berkshire AHEC operates as a healthcare education and training organization offering a unified platform of educational services. The core offerings include Medical Interpreter Training (a 60-hour certification program for spoken language healthcare interpreters) and Continuing Education (evidence-based inter-professional training for healthcare professionals). Supporting programs include the Health Scholars' Program (a one-year interdisciplinary training for health career students in collaboration with Berkshire Community College and UMass Chan Medical School) and the Tobacco Free Community Partnership (tobacco cessation and prevention initiatives). Conference Management & Hosting services provide logistics support for healthcare events. These services collectively advance the organization's mission of connecting professionals to development and students to healthcare careers through academic and community partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Medical Interpreter Training A 60-hour fundamentals training program for spoken-language interpreters that develops the skills required for effective and reliable interpretation in clinical settings, covering interpretation principles and methods, ethical considerations, cultural challenges, and preparation for language proficiency and certification assessments. Targets bilingual individuals preparing for medical interpreter roles.
• Continuing Education (CE)
• Health Scholars' Program A one-year interdisciplinary training program for health career students delivered in collaboration with Berkshire Community College and the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School. Provides supplemental curricula and community-based activities across eight core topic areas including inter-professional education, behavioral health integration, and telehealth. Supported by HRSA Grant No. U77HP03016 and delivered through the Moodle platform to students in nursing (ADN and LPN), physical therapist assistant, respiratory care, and community health worker programs.
• Tobacco Free Community Partnership (TFCP) A statewide-funded public health program supporting community efforts to help people quit tobacco, prevent youth from starting (including vaping prevention), and protect communities from secondhand smoke. Provides education and technical assistance to municipal boards of health and local organizations implementing tobacco control policies and regulations.
• Conference Management & Hosting

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• University of Massachusetts Medical School / MassAHEC NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1979Berkshire AHEC is sponsored by the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at UMass Medical School and is part of the statewide MassAHEC Network. This is the primary institutional partnership providing organizational oversight, funding, and programmatic resources. The relationship includes major funding and access to the statewide AHEC network infrastructure.
• Berkshire Community CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with BCC to deliver the AHEC Health Scholars' Program for health career students. Students at BCC can enroll in the program through Moodle. Programs include nursing (ADN and LPN), physical therapist assistant, respiratory care, and community health workers.
• Berkshire Health SystemsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal healthcare system partner providing clinical education opportunities and collaboration on health workforce initiatives in the Berkshire County region.
• The Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center (UMass Chan Medical School)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsorship of continuing education programs including ECHO Autism training, CANS Training, and adolescent assessment programs. The Shriver Center hosts programs and Berkshire AHEC administers CE credits.
• Spiritual Competency AcademyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsoring CE programs for psychologists; APA-approved sponsor providing CE credits for psychology professionals attending Berkshire AHEC programs.
• Berkshire District Medical SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional medical society partnership for physician education and healthcare workforce collaboration.
• National AHEC Organization (NAO)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational membership organization for AHECs; Berkshire AHEC participates in the national network of 220+ AHECs supporting underserved communities.
• New England Rural Health RoundtableminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional health coalition addressing rural health needs in New England; Berkshire AHEC participates as member institution.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Boston Area Health Education Center (Boston AHEC): Fellow MassAHEC Network center serving the Boston metro area. Operates the same AHEC model — CE for healthcare professionals, health career pipeline programs, and public health initiatives — making it the closest operational peer in the same statewide system.
• Worcester Area Health Education Center: MassAHEC Network peer covering central Massachusetts, delivering CE programming and health workforce pipeline initiatives in close alignment with Berkshire AHEC's model and funding streams.
• Pioneer Valley Area Health Education Center: MassAHEC Network peer serving western Massachusetts communities adjacent to Berkshire County. Comparable scope of CE, interpreter, and health scholars programming with similar regulatory and funding environment.
• Central Massachusetts Area Health Education Center: Another MassAHEC Network peer, providing continuing education and health career programming under the same statewide structure. Directly comparable in mission, scale, and funding mechanisms.
• Cicatelli Associates Inc. (CAI): National nonprofit focused on health workforce training and public health capacity building with similar CE, interpreter, and community health programming. Comparable mission and federal-grant funding model, though at significantly larger scale.
• LanguageLine Solutions: Largest U.S. provider of interpretation services and operator of LanguageLine Academy, which delivers medical interpreter training and certification preparation. Directly competes with Berkshire AHEC's Medical Interpreter Training program for bilingual learners seeking healthcare interpretation careers.
• Cross Cultural Communications: Specialized training provider for medical and community interpreters, including 60-hour programs aligned with CCHI and NBCMI certification. Closest training-content peer for Berkshire AHEC's interpreter program.

Others

• National AHEC Organization (NAO): National coordinating body for the 220+ AHEC network of which Berkshire AHEC is a member. Not a competitor, but the umbrella organization whose federal advocacy, shared curriculum, and network programming directly shape Berkshire AHEC's operating environment.
• Massachusetts Department of Public Health: State funder and policy partner that commissions the Tobacco Free Community Partnership and other public health programming. Functions more as sponsor than competitor, but its funding priorities and program design choices directly shape Berkshire AHEC's portfolio.

Emerging players

• MedBridge: Online continuing education platform for healthcare professionals offering accredited CE across multiple disciplines. Competes for the same healthcare professional CE customer that Berkshire AHEC serves, but through scalable digital delivery rather than in-person and regional programming.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BerkshireAHEC
• Facebookfacebook.com/BerkshireAHEC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/berkshire-area-health-education-center-berkshire-ahec
• Instagraminstagram.com/berkshireahec

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Berkshire Ahec