Urban Health Program Brings Middle Schoolers to UIC for Health Sciences Enrichment
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In October 2022 the UIC Urban Health Program launched a new program focused on eliminating racial disparities in health education by increasing the number of under-represented youth entering the health professions. Named the Mini Health Professions Program (MHPP), this unique pathway program recruits 4th and 5th graders from underserved communities adjacent to UIC and introduces them to the wonders of the health sciences and to career options in healthcare. Emphasizing hands-on learning experiences, the program helps students develop critical-thinking skills while connecting them with mentors and role models throughout UIC’s academic health enterprise.
The program’s first year was met with great success, enrolling a total of 101 students, of whom nearly all were racial minorities and 78% of whom were from low-income households. Additionally, if all the students were to pursue college education, 58% would be first generation college students.
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The program was comprised of seven sessions, one Saturday per month from October through May. The sessions each focused on a particular organ or body system: neurovascular, cardiovascular, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, dental health and mental health. Each session engaged students through a lecture component, an anatomy dissection component, a scientific experiment component, a technology/professions component, and a public health component. The program culminated with a ceremony at the UIC Student Center West with over 210 parents and guardians in attendance to celebrate the students’ achievement.
A unique feature of the MHPP is that it incorporates participation of Graduate Student Leaders from all seven of the UIC health sciences colleges: Medicine, Nursing, Dentistry, Public Health, Pharmacy, Social Work and Applied Health Sciences. Through this approach, the students receive firsthand exposure to a wide variety of fields in the health professions.
Dr. Darryl Pendleton, executive director of the Urban Health Program (UHP), is proud of what the MHPP accomplished in its first year. “UHP’s fundamental mission to increase minority representation within the health sciences and the health professions, with the ultimate goal of increasing health equity and improving the quality and availability of healthcare in underserved urban areas,” he said. “What the MHPP accomplished in its first year is both impressive and promising, and we look forward to ongoing engagement with middle school children to foster future healthcare leaders who will promote health equity in our communities.”
