Rising sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders in Charleston are being introduced to various health care topics as part of a four-week “Entrepreneurial Learning Center.”
The 17 days of learning, which began May 22 and run four-and-a-half hours per day, Monday through Thursday — the finale will be on Friday, June 16 — are being conducted by the University of Mississippi’s McLean Institute for Public Service and Community Engagement, in partnership with the National Charleston Day Organization.
The sessions are being held at the Charleston Day Club Center on Oak Grove Road.
Dr. J.R. Love, project manager for McLean’s Catalyzing Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) program, said some of his students are conducting the four-week ELC events this year not only in Charleston, but in Marks and Vardaman, too.
The focus in Charleston on health care came at the request of Dr. Catherine Woodyard, executive director of the local James C. Kennedy Wellness Center, Love explained.
“Dr. Woodyard has worked with the McLean Institute for several years and had asked us if we would consider coming to Charleston,” he noted.
An informational packet was sent home with local students who met the criteria. Up to 20 could register. About that number were on hand for last Thursday’s session. The cost to students is $5 per week.
The health care topics have been broad, Love explained.
“We’re touching on everything from exercise to diseases, and what it looks like to get into the health care profession as a doctor or nurse,” he said.
This week, Love said the students were to visit the Kennedy Wellness Center on Tuesday and on another day welcome an Ole Miss professor in the field of health exercise science.
There will be guest presenters — called “community partners” — from local health care-related enterprises, including a pharmacist and business owner, Love noted.
“We’re bringing in different people and letting them interact,” he said.
During the final week, an executive from the Mississippi Development Authority’s Entrepreneur Center is to be the special guest.
The goal, according to a letter sent home to parents and guardians, “is that children are continuously learning, developing healthy habits and participating in experiences that build an entrepreneurial mindset.”
IN THE PHOTO: Steven James Mockler (right), an AmeriCorps VISTA worker at the University of Mississippi Museum, reads “The Secret World of Walter Anderson” to students at the Charleston Day Club Center. (Photo by Clay McFerrin)
