Volunteer

Our goal is to develop and expand recruitment and retention efforts by creating a list of professionals who are willing to participate in a variety of educational activities such as mentoring, job shadowing, internships and more. Champlain Valley AHEC and our educational partners will then use this list to assist students in career exploration.

If You Are a Health Care Provider

A student shadowing a technician.The following is a partial list of career exploration activities that we ask you to become involved in:

  • Job Shadow – students follow a professional in their work setting for a brief period in order to get an understanding of that occupation.
  • Internships – students spend a specified period with an employer in order to get an understanding of that occupation.
  • Site visits/tours – as part of a class project, students visit a site to gain a broad overview of different professions.
  • Presentations – professionals visit a classroom to engage students in hands-on discussion of their profession or an aspect of health and the relevance to education.
  • Career fairs – career awareness through fun, interactive booths with brochures, handouts and a display representing a health care occupation.
  • Mentors – a sustained relationship between a youth and a professional, which offers role modeling, support, advocacy, and career awareness.
  • Teacher summer internship/job shadow program – an opportunity for teachers to experience the world of business through an extended, paid learning experience or through an unpaid, one-day experience that enables teachers to integrate new skills or knowledge into the classroom.

If you are interested in helping with any of the programs described here, or if have any questions or comments, please call (802) 527-1474.

If You Live In The Champlain Valley Region

Do you have a spare bedroom in a comfortable house? If so, would you consider sharing your home with a medical student for a few weeks? Each year medical students at The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at The University of Vermont  come to the Champlain Valley region to do a rotation with a local physician, or rural clinic or hospital. They are away from their own homes, and too far in some cases for a daily commute back to Burlington. They need a private bedroom, bathroom and access to a kitchen to store and prepare their own food. We have students coming occasionally to Middlebury, Grand Isle and northern Franklin county who are looking for a comfortable place to stay within a ten to fifteen minute drive of these areas.

 

Most students are in their third year of medical school at the University of Vermont. The student is busy during the day learning from an experienced clinical professional and you are not expected to provide entertainment or food. Students have their own car, and the Champlain Valley AHEC office handles all the arrangements, directions and other special instructions that you may have. Rotations vary from two to five weeks. We are looking for volunteers who can open up their home and help a young person during their education in rural medicine.

For more information about becoming a host home, please contact Tammy Johnson at (802) 527-1474 x213 or email at [email protected].