MGH Youth Programs
MGH Youth Programs aim to educate young people in Boston, Chelsea and Revere from elementary through high school and beyond about health and science subjects and expose them to related careers in order to equip them with the knowledge and skills to excel in life and career.
MGH Youth Programs aims to provide 465 youth each year with academic, life, and career skills that expand and enhance their educational and career options. MGH takes a “longitudinal approach” that recognizes the value of fostering STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills and interests in young people across a broad age spectrum, from 3rd grade to college. Students from schools and youth-serving programs across the Boston area participate in a variety of age-appropriate programs.
In grades 3 to 5, STEM Clubs aim to develop excitement and engagement in STEM subjects, build confidence in students’ abilities to succeed in these subjects, and increase exposure to STEM careers. Fun activities, such as hands-on science exploration strengthen the students’ intellectual abilities and critical thinking skills, their sense of belonging and the mastery of their future. Additionally, the MGH Multicultural Affairs Office offers guest speakers who are physicians of color-in-training to inspire and motivate students. Clubs are hosted at after-school programs and/or community organizations in Boston neighborhoods, such as the Boys & Girls Clubs in Roxbury and Charlestown, the Richard J. Murphy School in Dorchester and the Harvard Kent School in Charlestown.
Senior STEM Clubs for Grades 6-8, hosted at Boys & Girls Clubs and the Murphy School, continue the engagement with hand-on science and greater exposure to technology. In the Science Fair Mentoring Programs for Grade 7&8, MGH mentors and the Journal of Emerging Investigators work with James P. Timilty Middle School students in Roxbury on science fair projects from concept to completion. Senior STEM Club students learn how to work as a team, develop research skills, and improve their public speaking and communication skills by working on science curriculum. In 2012, 18 Science Fair students with MGH mentors were selected to compete in the city-wide Middle School Science Fair. Mentors and students may choose to extend their relationship through our partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay. There is also a career exploration initiative for select graduating 8th graders that provides paid summer internships at MGH during which they participate in Summer Fit, a health, wellness and fitness curriculum.
STEM programming for secondary school students is more intensive and comprehensive. With our partners, East Boston High School, Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers, Revere High School, Chelsea High School, the Charlestown community and Concerned Black Men of Massachusetts, the weekly curriculum on the MGH campus provides foundational learning for grades 9 through high school and beyond. The goal is to spark college aspirations and to understand the connection between a health or science career, and what it takes to get there. Summer enrichment in STEM curriculum takes place for students in STEM Camp through Wheelock College and the Efficacy Institute's Summer Success Program.
MGH Youth Scholars Program is a more intensive and comprehensive, four-year program for students interested in Science, Technology, engineering and Math (STEM) that focuses on career exploration, research and college readiness. Students also learn about various STEM careers through shadowships and high-level internships.
Job Shadow Day: This annual event provides students with an experiential glimpse into various careers at MGH. Job Shadow Day helps students gain awareness of the skills needed for certain jobs, identify career interests, understand the relevance of school to work and careers, and apply and develop the skill of interacting with professionals.
In 2013, MGH hosted 100 Boston public school students
In 2012, the MGH Youth Programs served 465 youth. In the 2012-13 academic year, there will be 90 MGH Youth Scholars in grades 9, 10, 11 & 12. MGH Youth Programs added 10 new community partners to the program. More than 300 MGH employees volunteered for MGH Youth Program activities totalling 21,216 volunteer hours. Recent surveys indicate that students in MGH Youth Programs:
--increased engagement and enjoyment in STEM subjects
--felt positively challenged with the MGH Youth programs
--felt a sense of competency for learning
--felt supported within the Youth Programs
--were taking steps toward planning for their futures
10 Summer Alumni, college students who are graduates of the MGH Youth Scholars program, worked at MGH in 2012 between their college semesters in paid interships related to their field of study or interest.
Sports medicine experience
MGH Hotline 08.06.10 Only weeks after the dedication of the Dinesh G. Patel, MD, Arthroscopy Learning Laboratory, the lab’s resources are already being put to good use.
Doctors, students become 'pen pals' with MGH mentoring program
The one-on-one mentoring program matched 25 10th-graders from Edward M. Kennedy Academy, East Boston High School, English High, and Fenway High with researchers and physicians from MGH.
Abdi Ali worked this summer as an intern in the Mass General Hospital OR. Read his story.
Meet Abdi Ali, an alumnus of East Boston High School and a student at Denison University. Ali participated in the MGH Youth Scholar Alumni Summer Program. Students applied to this new program that provided alumni/graduates of the MGH High School Program with employment and networking opportunities as part of their continued learning and professional development. Ali is pursuing an undergraduate degree in History and Psychology double major with Pre-medicine concentration.
Margo McGovern
Phone: (617) 724-3210
