Local Student Becomes First From ECHS to Attend Prestigious UK Cancer Program

ECHS junior Emma Ray holds a human brain during the UK ACTION medical program.

Peytin Manor, story and photo:
Emma Ray, a sixteen year-old junior attending Edmonson County High School, is the first ECHS student to be accepted into the University of Kentucky's ACTION program. She applied and was accepted while in her freshman medical class in 2024.

The Markey Cancer Center’s Appalachian Career Training in Oncology (ACTION) Program provides select high school students located within the fifty-four Appalachian counties and undergraduate students enrolled into the University of Kentucky with an opportunity to gain knowledge in cancer research, clinicals, and educational experiences that will augment participants’ interest in pursuing biomedical careers with a cancer-related focus. 

While attending this program, she shadowed alongside doctors and surgeons where she was able to observe multiple surgeries. While being alongside professionals in the lab, she learned the importance of laboratory work in research and the future of medical advancements. The program provided workshops such as ACT preparation and college readiness. Aside from the medical work to be done, the participants took multiple field trips such as Kings Island and the movies. 

“This program is important to me because it has given me so many opportunities that I could have never gotten without it," Emma said. "When I think about everything this program has done for me, I never know what to say because it has given me so much that I can’t even describe it. I have met so many amazing people and friends that I’m so happy to have in my life, I have gotten a taste of what college life will be like as a high school student, and the knowledge I have received and experiences I have gotten have been life changing and I could never think of my life without it.”

Emma will attend her last summer at ACTION in 2026 where she will be awarded with the digital ACTION Program Completion Badge. This badge signifies the hard work each participant has put into this program and their readiness to confidently address oncological discrepancies in Appalachian Kentucky by advocating for cancer awareness in the surrounding communities and pursuing careers related to or in the field of oncology.

From her experience at ACTION, Emma encourages every student interested in the medical field to apply for this program. In January, this competitive program will open and will be due May 1, 2026. This program is free of charge; however, it is a two-year commitment which includes one Saturday each month and five weeks during the summer.