Students Inspire Young Scientists through the 2018 “Mini-MSTP”!
by Krystian Kozek (G4)
This May, the Vanderbilt Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) hosted 80 students from Dickson County schools and 80 students from LEAD Academy Southeast in Nashville for a one-day crash-course on what it means to be a physician-scientist. The Miniature Medical Scientist Training Program, aka the Mini-MSTP, is an outreach event made possible by the incredible support of the MSTP Leadership and the generously volunteered time of our MSTP students. In an outstanding turnout, 36 student volunteers guided the visiting elementary- and middle-school students through six hands-on workshops, which featured ultrasounds, organ recitals, physical diagnosis, microbiology, DNA extraction, and prosthetics. Students were greeted by MSTP Director Dr. Chris Williams with an early-morning introduction to life as a physician-scientist before delving into a day of activities in science and medicine. Stay tuned for the mini-MSTP next year, and if you would like to participate in MSTP outreach events throughout the year, reach out to Dr. Megan Williams today!
Special thanks to this year’s organizers and workshop leaders:
Organ Recital Leaders – Gabriella DiCarlo (G3) and Shan Parikh (G4)
Physical Diagnosis Leader – Rachel Brown (G1)
Ultrasound Leaders – Katherine Konvinse (G3) and Shawn Barton (G3)
Prosthetics Leaders – Caleb Ford (G2) and Abin Abraham (G1)
DNA Extraction Leaders – Victoria Martucci (G2) and Matthew Madden (G1)
Microbiology Leaders – Abin Abraham (G1) and Gabriella DiCarlo (G3)
Assistant Director – Abin Abraham (G1)
Director – Krystian Kozek (G4)
MSTP Assistant Director – Dr. Megan Williams
