ASAP
C/o Department of Psychiatry
The University of Chicago
5841 S Maryland Avenue, MC 3077
Chicago, Illinois 60637
Voice: (773)702-6751
http://http.bsd.uchicago.edu/~asap-staff
Adolescent Substance Abuse Prevention Program
The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine
Dear Incoming MSIs:
Imagine yourself in front of 30 excited 6th graders, eagerly raising their hands to answer the next question. Picture yourself showing the kids a liver filled with tumors, giving them a chance to see cancer and begin to understand how it grows. If you want to get involved and start making a difference in young people’s lives, please read on!
The Adolescent Substance Abuse Prevention (ASAP) Program would like to invite you to start your medical school career by participating in a school visit on Wednesday, September 19th as part of Orientation Week's Community Service Day. We are looking for enthusiastic first years who would like to accompany us as we teach at a local elementary school.
During the day, you will be able to:
•
Become a role model for 5th and 6th graders.• Give kids the knowledge to help them make informed decisions concerning drug use.
• Have the incredible opportunity to laugh, teach and learn with a classroom of 5th or 6th graders.
• Get a chance to handle real human organs.
• Practice speaking in front of a class and interacting with young adolescents.
• Get to know and teach with second, third and fourth year medical students.
• Become active in a student program that has volunteered over 11,000 hours and taught over 5,000 adolescent students.
We will visit many schools throughout the year, but this is your chance to jump right in. Don’t worry if you are anxious about teaching in a classroom setting. Your uneasy feelings will disappear once you feel the excitement of the kids and listen to their questions. We will provide you with a curriculum guide, and workshop training. There will be ample instruction and practice with your five-person ASAP teaching team so you will feel comfortable your first time out.
September 19th is full of many interesting and worthwhile volunteer activities, so if you choose to do another, there is no cause for concern - you will have many more opportunities throughout the year to participate in ASAP and positively influence young people.
In order to organize the ASAP visit, we need to know if you are planning to participate. Please let us know by filling out the Community Service Form and returning it in the envelope provided.
If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to call Jenny Kossoris at (773) 324-1663 or email her at kossoris@ uchicago.edu. If you would like more information about the program, check out our website: http://http.bsd.uchicago.edu/~asap-staff or flip through the ASAP prospectus included in this mailing. Enjoy the rest of your summer! We can’t wait to meet you and look forward to teaching with you soon!
Sincerely,
The ASAP staff