NEWS

Durham students participate in Health Professions Partnership Initiative at UNC-CH

CHAPEL HILL -- Twenty-seven Durham County middle- and high-school students participated in the 3000 by 2000: Health Professions Partnership Initiative this summer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The 3000 by 2000: Health Professions Partnership Initiative (HPPI) is a national program that encourages traditionally underrepresented minority and disadvantaged students to choose a career in the health sciences. The program's mission is to tell students about educational opportunities in the health sciences, encourage them to consider a health career and enrich their education to include information about health sciences.

The HPPI program includes a “summer experience” for students. Students come to the Chapel Hill campus daily for several weeks to spend time at each of UNC-CH's health sciences schools. The next summer, the same students return to campus for a research training program and spend six weeks working alongside a health-sciences researcher. Forty-seven students participated in this year's program.

“The summer experience can be invaluable in helping a student learn what it is like on a day-to-day basis to be a health professional,” said Dr. Karen Demby, the program's coordinator. “The summer experience also is designed to make students aware of the variety of health professions that exist and to choose one that suits them perfectly -- a career that captures their interest, evokes their passion and utilizes their specific talents and personal strengths.”

Throughout the year at Carolina, HPPI trains high-school teachers and guidance counselors about how to encourage students to consider a career in health sciences. The program also publishes a newsletter that targets students in grades 8 through 12.

HPPI is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which gave $35 million to fund HPPI at 10 institutions in the United States, including UNC-CH. The Association of American Medical Colleges offers national organizational structure and technical support and in 1998, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation plans to fund an additional 10 programs.

Following is a list of Durham County students who attended the summer program:

Carrington Middle School - Benjamin Connelly, Maima Kamara, Jesse McCoy

Durham Magnet School - Selim Nurudeen

Githen Middle School - Fitima Harris, Jennifer Harris, Jenise Hudson

Hillside High School - Smriti Bhotika, Ginger Boykin, Tyanne Chavis, Tamara Harbison, Jessica Taylor, Erica Weaver, Kimberlee Wynn

C.E. Jordan High School - Aliyah Abdur-Rahman, Justin Bonaparte, Willietta Gibson, Elizabeth Jackson, Joel McCauley, Brandon Pierce

Lowes Grove Middle School - Ananda Ghosh, Jasmine Gorham, Shelton Jones II

Northern High School - Kelly Lloyd

Riverside High School - Jocelyn Peacock, Tiffany Poole

Southern Durham High School - Naureen Syed

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Orange County students participate in Health Professions Partnership Initiative at UNC-CH

CHAPEL HILL -- Nineteen Orange County middle- and high-school students participated in the 3000 by 2000: Health Professions Partnership Initiative this summer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The 3000 by 2000: Health Professions Partnership Initiative (HPPI) is a national program that encourages traditionally underrepresented minority and disadvantaged students to choose a career in the health sciences. The program's mission is to tell students about educational opportunities in the health sciences, encourage them to consider a health career and enrich their education to include information about health sciences.

The HPPI program includes a “summer experience” for students. Students come to the Chapel Hill campus daily for several weeks to spend time at each of UNC-CH's health sciences schools. The next summer, the same students return to campus for a research training program and spend six weeks working alongside a health-sciences researcher. Forty-seven students participated in this year's program.

“The summer experience can be invaluable in helping a student learn what it is like on a day-to-day basis to be a health professional,” said Dr. Karen Demby, the program's coordinator. “The summer experience also is designed to make students aware of the variety of health professions that exist and to choose one that suits them perfectly -- a career that captures their interest, evokes their passion and utilizes their specific talents and personal strengths.”

Throughout the year at Carolina, HPPI trains high-school teachers and guidance counselors about how to encourage students to consider a career in health sciences. The program also publishes a newsletter that targets students in grades 8 through 12.

HPPI is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which gave $35 million to fund HPPI at 10 institutions in the United States, including UNC-CH. The Association of American Medical Colleges offers national organizational structure and technical support and in 1998, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation plans to fund an additional 10 programs.

Following is a list of Orange County students who attended the summer program:

Chapel Hill High School - Brandon Bunn, Bryan Bunn, James Harris, Julia Oh, Wayne Robinson, Camila Silva, Kevin Vinson, Princetta Watkins, Briana Webster

East Chapel Hill Middle School - Dora Din, Devon Whitmore

Orange High School - Chandra Florence, Myrissa Garth, Krystal Graves, Ebony Parker, Sabrina Torain, Tacarra Torain

C.W. Stanford Middle School - Shanna Simpson, Andrea Townsend

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Wake County student participates in Health Professions Partnership Initiative at UNC-CH

CHAPEL HILL -- Alecia Hardy, a student at Leesville High School in Raleigh, participated in the 3000 by 2000: Health Professions Partnership Initiative this summer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The 3000 by 2000: Health Professions Partnership Initiative (HPPI) is a national program that encourages traditionally underrepresented minority and disadvantaged students to choose a career in the health sciences. The program's mission is to tell students about educational opportunities in the health sciences, encourage them to consider a health career and enrich their education to include information about health sciences.

The HPPI program includes a “summer experience” for students. Students come to the Chapel Hill campus daily for several weeks to spend time at each of UNC-CH's health sciences schools. The next summer, the same students return to campus for a research training program and spend six weeks working alongside a health-sciences researcher. Forty-seven students participated in this year's program.

“The summer experience can be invaluable in helping a student learn what it is like on a day-to-day basis to be a health professional,” said Dr. Karen Demby, the program's coordinator. “The summer experience also is designed to make students aware of the variety of health professions that exist and to choose one that suits them perfectly -- a career that captures their interest, evokes their passion and utilizes their specific talents and personal strengths.”

Throughout the year at Carolina, HPPI trains high-school teachers and guidance counselors about how to encourage students to consider a career in health sciences. The program also publishes a newsletter that targets students in grades 8 through 12.

HPPI is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which gave $35 million to fund HPPI at 10 institutions in the United States, including UNC-CH. The Association of American Medical Colleges offers national organizational structure and technical support and in 1998, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation plans to fund an additional 10 programs.

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News Services print contact: Karen Stinneford
News Services broadcast contact: Karen Moon