Youth explore health and social service careers at UAA Academic Preview Day
by Vicki Nechodomu |
Over 400 high school juniors and seniors from 11 high schools across Anchorage converged on the UAA Alaska Airline Center on Sept. 30, 2022 to explore their future career and academic options at UAA’s Academic Preview Day.
“What a pleasure to engage with my first UAA Preview Day last Friday! The Alaska Airlines center was buzzing with excited high school students eager to learn more about the great diversity of programs we offer here at UAA and in our college,” said Debbie Craig, Dean of the College of Health (COH).
The event provided visiting students with engaging, hands-on activities as well as the opportunity to discuss programs further with program faculty and staff. Some COH tables included:
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- A health career photo booth (Alaska Center for Rural Health and Health Workforce)
- Alcohol impairment simulation goggles (Justice Center)
- Skills lab trainers such as IV arms with simulated blood and suture arms (School of Nursing)
- Fitness tests (Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation)
- Colorblind tests (Medical Assisting and Medical Office Coding)
- qCPR competitions and manikin displays (Interprofessional Health Sciences Simulation Center)
- Various displays of tools and instruments (Dental Assisting, Dental Hygiene, Surgical Technology, and Diagnostic Medical Sonography)
- Numerous other games, displays, and other activities facilitated by other clinical, community, and behavioral health programs at UAA
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Grace Leu-Burke, assistant professor and program director of Medical Laboratory Science (MLS), facilitated a Micro Match game at her table. She recognizes that MLS is a less familiar area of study, making events such as Preview Day important to her program. “Reaching out to high school students in this type of format is essential to provide information on other avenues of healthcare education besides nursing, pharmacy, and pre-med,” Leu-Burke said. “It was fun to see the students try to match the bacteria to disease and they learned not only about medical laboratory science, but some diagnostic microbiology!”
Matthew Cuellar, School of Social Work assistant professor, was grateful for the opportunity to talk with youth about what it really means to pursue a future career in his field. “It was nice to shift the perspective of social work away from ‘taking babies’ to the more accurate description of social workers being change agents and brokers of resources who advocate for fair and equal treatment of all human beings,” said Cuellar. “Prospective students really opened their eyes when they saw our passion for the profession.”
At the Division of Population and Health Sciences table, assistant professor Kristin Stoepler and administrative specialist Katie Frost had an opportunity to not only speak about population health careers but also highlight student support services available at UAA. Frost used the SeaWolf Food Pantry as an example of Population Health in action and ensured students know how to utilize the resource to secure food, should they choose to attend UAA. “This excited a particular group of students to be able to visualize how they could use the Health Sciences degree,” said Stoepler. “One student stated their family could benefit from a food pantry.”
For many, the event, being one of the first in-person recruitment and outreach events since the start of the pandemic, provided a refreshed level of enthusiasm and energy. "My favorite part of Preview Day was reconnecting with colleagues, former students, and prospective students and simply getting a chance to share why we are passionate about social work," said Cuellar. "The collegiality has been missed since the start of the pandemic, and the energy was rejuvenating, to say the least.”
"A huge thank you to our amazing faculty and staff who showed with their engaging tables to spread the news of our many health and justice programs," said Craig. "It is exactly this type of engagement from our COH family that will foster increased enrollments, translating into a vibrant workforce for Alaska’s future. My sincere thanks to all who organized and participated in this great event!"
Are you College of Health faculty or staff wishing to get involved in future outreach and recruitment events? Contact Vicki Nechodomu at vnechodomu@alaska.edu
Are you considering attending UAA to pursue a future career in health and social services? Request more information.
CATEGORIES
TAGS
- Awards
- Behavioral Health
- Climate Change
- Community
- COVID-19
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Forensic Care
- Giving
- Simulation
- Workforce Development
ACADEMIC UNITS
- Department of Human Services
- Division of Population Health Sciences
- Justice Center
- School of Allied Health
- School of Nursing
- School of Preventive & Therapeutic Sciences
- School of Social Work
PARTNER PROGRAMS
CENTERS & INSTITUTES
- Alaska Center for Rural Health and Health Workforce
- Center for Human Development
- Child Welfare Academy
- Interprofessional Health Sciences Simulation Center
MEDIA INQUIRIES / STORY LEADS