A Central Florida program is helping Latino students and their families explore careers in STEM and health care in both English and Spanish during summer vacation.

Yashira Valentin Feliciano, STEM program manager for the Hispanic Access Foundation, said the effort gives families access to career opportunities they might not otherwise encounter.

“It's giving access to communities that otherwise probably wouldn't have seen career pathways that even myself I hadn't heard about,” Valentin Feliciano explained. “For example, if you're in a hospital, there are people sterilizing the equipment before surgery.”

The initiative brings professionals, including engineers from the space technology company Blue Origin and a rheumatologist, to community events. At a talk Monday, students created rockets, asked questions and learned directly from experts.

Events are free and open to all. Families can track the upcoming schedule by following the Hispanic Access Foundation on social media.

Valentin Feliciano stressed the program is not a summer camp but a series of episodic events throughout the year, with more activities when school is out of session. Valentin Feliciano added the goal is to spark curiosity and inspire the next generation of health and science professionals.

“It's a free program,” Valentin Feliciano emphasized. “We are super intentional and interested in inviting the whole community, the whole family. If you want to bring your grandma and your parents and your friends, it is a beautiful opportunity to engage, to learn science, to be in community.”

The foundation partners with the Renacer Foundation and is launching a virtual mentorship program this summer for students in grades 10-12. Professionals also can apply to be speakers.

Source: Public News Service