Preparing the Next Generation
UF Health Jacksonville’s Y.E.A.H. program encourages youth to explore jobs in health care.
UF Health Jacksonville partnered with Darnell-Cookman School of the Medical Arts to expose high school students to the possibility of pursuing careers in the health and science fields through a program called Youth Education for Advancing in Health, or the Y.E.A.H. program.
As an organization employing health care professionals and research experts, part of our mission is to teach the next generation of leaders and prepare them for work in the medical sciences as health care administrators, practitioners and/or researchers. The program’s objective is to provide a fun, interactive experience in which participating students can learn more about health care careers and professions they otherwise might not have known about or been exposed to.
Ann-Marie Knight, vice president of Community Engagement and chief diversity office at UF Health Jacksonville, poses for a selfie with a group of students from Darnell-Cookman during one of their visits.
The UF Health Program Planning Committee invited and secured faculty and staff to serve as Y.E.A.H. presenters for ninth and 10th grade student participants. They selected 18 students to attend four educational sessions that included a didactic program of topics and activities. Students briefly toured units and engaged in activities providing an in-depth look at various health care career experiences and purposes. Ultimately, the program reached students by providing support and available resources from a variety of backgrounds.
UF Health Jacksonville aims to continue implementing the Y.E.A.H. program each year and is inviting the next group of student leaders for the school year 2022-2023. Thank you to the faculty and staff and the committee for their efforts to create a program for the betterment of our future leaders.
