Medical Mentorship: Building Pathways to Health Careers
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Project Description
Hopa Mountain, working in partnership with MSU’s WWAMI Medical School, proposes to develop a Medical Mentorship program that will provide near peer mentors to Montana high school students interested in becoming physicians or other types of health care professionals. The primary goal of the Medical Mentorship program is to help students learn more about medical careers and how to apply to and graduate from institutions of higher learning with a health sciences or biomedical research degree. Medical Mentorship will connect high school students with undergraduate and medical school mentors, including first and second year WWAMI Medical School students, who can help students prepare for careers in medicine and learn how to succeed in college while working toward a STEM degree. Some of the most powerful tools– mentoring, role modeling, and career exposure—have been shown to be effective in a variety of settings. Mentoring and support encourages engagement in science, math, and engineering careers. Given the vast distances between these high school students and those in a university setting, this near- peer mentoring program will take place primarily through peer-led group learning through collaborative learning technologies for students who are not co- located in a lab or work-based setting. . Hopa Mountain will develop innovative training and mentoring opportunities for low-income, first generation, and reservation-based Montana high school students to strengthen their STEM skills and prepare them for higher education and careers in health sciences. The overall project goal of Medical Mentorship is to support rural and tribal youth’s interest in and exposure to careers in the biomedical and health sciences while giving them the skills to play leadership roles in increasing healthy family practices in their homes and communities. Medical Mentorship will have meaningful impacts annually through three strategies: (1) Year-round mentoring and college preparation programs for 250 teens to explore health career options; (2) Medical Mentorship: Food as Health materials and programs for 2,000 children and families; and (3) Professional development for 200 educators, community members, and parents.
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Abstract
Hopa Mountain, working in partnership with Montana State University’s WWAMI Medical School, will launch a Medical Mentorship program for high school students with near peer mentoring opportunities for both the medical school students and high school students. The goal of this initiative is to increase the number of underserved youth who seek careers in medical and health-related fields, ultimately improving their communities. Medical Mentorship will have meaningful impacts annually through three strategies: (1) Year-round mentoring and college preparation programs for 250 teens to explore health career options; (2) Medical Mentorship: Food as Health materials and programs for 2,000 children and families; and (3) Professional development for 200 educators, community members, and parents. The overall goal of the Medical Mentorship program is to support rural and tribal youth’s interest in and exposure to careers in the biomedical and health sciences while giving them the skills and resources to assume leadership roles in implementing healthy family practices in their homes and communities.
