Oct. 16, 2019 -- Senior Aminah Abdul-Hafeez spent three weeks of her summer break working on cadavers, diagnosing mock patients, and practicing alongside speech therapists, physical therapists, and music therapists at Cleveland State’s Northeast Ohio Medical (NEOMED) campus. Aminah was one of fifteen local students selected for CSU’s Vikings CHAMPS program, learning about the pre-college preparatory program from her Pre-Calculus tutor, Sandra Roach.
The Vikings CHAMPS program is an enrichment opportunity for rising juniors and seniors to learn more about careers in the health and medical professions. Students learned about relevant research, leadership, and presentation skills. Aminah was challenged to create poster presentations for public critiquing in just 15 minutes, which taught her important workplace skills like thinking on her feet, being flexible, and improvising. She also had the opportunity to consult with medical professionals, and conduct research of her own. Hafeez’s favorite experience from the program was working in the human cadaver lab because of the opportunity “to learn about anatomy from a real body, not from pictures.”
At the end of the three-week program, students were awarded a $500 stipend and a new laptop.
