Marissa Dupont, a Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine student, is planning to create and direct an organization of middle school students called Community Health Ambassadors Team, or CHAT, informing and empowering student leaders to better care for themselves and influence the care of their community. The program will have a rotating health care related theme of the month, from healthy eating and caring for family members, to tackling more modern topics such as understanding COVID-19, the risks of vaping, and understanding mental health. At the end of the program, students will pick a topic covered in the past school year to further research and host a poster presentation for the community. Marissa hopes to raise $1,500 which will be used for materials for the poster presentation and weekly meetings for an estimated 30 students ($1,000). She is also planning to go on a field trip with the students to the grocery store to teach them how to make smart and healthy choices with whatever amount they have.

Each year family, friends, and the community come together to support Schweitzer Fellows as they begin to implement innovative public service projects in Chicago’s most vulnerable communities. Our 2020-21 Fellows have created online “wish lists” of supplies and resources that will help them realize their service project goals.