Lessons Learned from our speakers

• Fluency in the language of STEM is a necessary component across many careers in health science (https://careerswithstem.com.au/the-a-z-stem-careers-list/#gsc.tab=0). Although most people think of nursing and physician careers, healthcare systems have pharmacists, engineers, data analyst, scientists, attorneys, community advocates, physical therapist and more.
• We all have a personal brand that can summarized as how we are generally viewed by those we routinely engage with. How would our teachers, parents and friends characterize us.
•  Are we detail oriented, on time, attentive?
•  Are we dependable when assigned tasks?
•  Do we consistently put forth maximal effort?
•  How do we respond to disappointment? Grit, determination, accountability or blaming others
•  Who do we surround ourselves with? 
• Do we have a vision board of where we want to be over the next 2-5 years. Assignment: Complete your college application including extracurricular activities. 
• Do we limit ourselves by having a predefined maximal activity that we are willing to put forth in pursuit of our goals or will we do “whatever it requires” to achieve our goals. 
• Define success more by delivering effort and following the process and less by “perfect outcomes”. Not all maximal individual efforts lead  immediately to desired outcomes. 

1) Start early: Student Dr Walker began her research career early with  a summer program that introduced her to the fundamentals of research. 

2) Anyone can do it. Trust in the fact that all academic challenges will require maximal efforts. As students advance into competitive fields of study, the competition increases. Dr Walker encouraged us to have confidence in our abilities. She emphasized that just 6-8 years ago, she was sitting in our seats and beginning to prepare a college application.

3) Make it a habit to get to know your teachers and work with them early to understand their expectations and goals for the course. 

a. Understand how the class is graded

b. Meet with teacher in “office hours” earlyto discuss poorly understood content

4) Find an outlet to manage schol stress with extracurricular activities to include physical activities and a social network 

5) Engage in school clubs and community activities that give back.

Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) has been prominent in the news media over the past year because of publicized events involving Bronnie James and Demar Hamlin.  However, even before those events, a law existed in the state of Ohio requiring programs uirethat involve students age 19 and under to be familiar with the appropriate response to SCA.

That said, in general minimal formal education is provided on how to respond appropriately in the sudden moment when all of a sudden a friend, teammate, teacher, family member or just a stranger at a supermarket suddenly "passes out" from cardiac arrest. I can imagine that in this moment most people are understandably panicked and not thinking clearly.

The chain of survival is a term that has been used to describe the sequence of response events that are necessary to improve a persons chance of making it out of SCA alive. The chain begins with prompt recognition that someone is having cardiac distress which in most cases of SCA very apparent since the person loses consciousness, may stop breathing and has no heart beat (pulse)

The first question I asked myself is would I be able to keep calm, respond appropriately and undertake the necessary steps. 

I look at this like a lot of high pressure moments in sports. When I have rehearsed and practiced, the stress of the moment is much less because I have been training on exactly what to do and how to respond. That is why as a student-athlete, one of my organization's important service projects is increasing awareness around how to respond to SCA. We organized CPR training for student athletes that included how to recognize breathing and heart distress, how to respond including chest compressions and defibrillation. It was a good team building exercise and participants received CPR certification. I would recommend the training, provided by the American Heart Association, to anyone interested.  However, there is a significant financial cost and time requirement and everyone is not able to do this type of training. Research studies have demonstrated that less than one in six (link to the article) adults are able to successfully deliver defibrillations by following instructions that accompany a standard AED.

Alternative methods of training are definitely needed to make sure that every person capable of responding in this situation is trained to do so. As fate has it, we identified the make them know your name Foundation (link to MTKYN) that has a core mission to train community members on how to respond to SCA with focused hands on educational activities and in some cases distribution of AEDs to community members and organizations. 

We are conducting an event with MTKYN to train middle, high schoolers and parents to educate them on responding to Sudden Cardiac Arrest. It's hard to imagine but 15-20 minutes of training may make the difference if this happens to someone around you.

We also have a physician expert on sports nutrition, optimal performance and heart health at this event to discuss how important healthy eating practices are not just now but in the future. 

Finally, test taking is an important skill set in high school curricula as well as preparing for ACT/SAT and for this reason, we have representatives from Sylvan Testing center to provide education, resources and tools on this important skill set

• Mrs. Labat-Joseph spoke about her pre college upbringing in Oakland, CA where she learned the value of community engagement/advocacy and an appreciation for global travel from her mother. Ultimately, she went to MIT as an engineering major with the desire to change communities. She pursued her masters at The University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy. She ultimately realized that her passion was in helping and advocating for STEM education in the Black American community and that is where she has spent the last 20 years. She was formerly the director of the STEM education pipeline programs at Case Western.

• Mrs. Labat-Joseph emphasized the need to find your passion which can be a sustaining force. She talked about the need to explore and engage the various resources that are available through programs like National Society of Black Engineers.

The universal application  requires your grades, classes,  school extracurriculars, outside of school activities and essays.  The more robust this application is with activities, research, programs that support your desired path, the better your application will be. You need to specify the number of hours dedicated per week or month to this, so start early in freshmen year to build your resume.

1. Get involved with one school activity that supports your interest in STEM
2. Get involved with one out of school activity with STEM (like this group) or research.
3. Attend meetings about STEM to write about on your application.
4. Build relationships with your best teachers to help them  write powerful letters of recommendation for you.

• Search for a career you have a passion in. Ayande is majoring in mechanical engineering at Harvard University. He envisions himself engaging in entrepreneurial projects after he completes his education. His desire to be a mechanical engineer originated from his love for Legos and building structures as a child.
• Life is filled with successes followed by setbacks. Ayande encouraged us to be confident in our abilities, preparation and effort. He suggested that we not get either emotionally too high or too low and kept our eyes on the goal.
• College prep is critical. Take the time to do courses that prepare one for the question style encountered on the ACT and SAT.
•  Ayande was captain of his soccer and track team and values the lessons that he learned from competitive athletics including team work, resiliency, effort, grit and focus. 
• Although he is working hard to get the best education at a premier Ivy League institution, Ayande emphasized that he still manages to carve time out to socialize, have fun and enjoy the college experience.