June 1, 2022- Benie Kalala, Community Sourcing Strategist at HSHS St. Mary’s, talked about the Jerry J. Dawson Civic Leadership Institute’s upcoming healthcare boot camp. Kalala pioneered the program after recognizing a lack of healthcare professions in the area.
“There are so many different gaps out there, and really educating our students on what careers are out there, is really important to me to help close those gaps,” Kalala said. “So if we don’t have the staff already available to treat our patients and help our community, that’s going to impact the community health overall, especially in Decatur. For me, it was about creating a future pipeline, letting those students know there are career opportunities right here in your very own community. We have organizations that are here to help you get to those next steps, and there is also schooling available in your own backyard.”
Kalala partnered with Dr. Juanita Morris, coordinator of the Jerry J. Dawson Civic Leadership Institute, to create the DCLI’s first healthcare boot camp, which is a hands on experience for students interested in healthcare. The goal is to help students gain experiences with major healthcare employers in the community.
“I was able to pitch this idea to her, and we were just able to make magic happen,” Kalala said. “It was one random brain burst of a hat, and I said you know I think this would be something cool, a hands on experience for our students to get out there and learn. During the pandemic I had a little extra downtime to kind of sort through what I wanted the boot camp to look like, and then I was able to talk to her. We put our brain power together, and we were able to create the healthcare boot camp.”
The boot camp will begin on Monday, June 20th, and will last until Friday, June 24th. Every day will begin at 9 a.m., and end at 3 p.m.
Register HERE.
Find out more about the healthcare boot camp HERE.
Below is the full interview with Benie Kalala, Community Strategist at HSHS St. Mary’s.
