In June, the Mesa campus had its initial meeting to organize the Pima Student Chapter of American Medical Technologists. We invited Jan Sesser from AMT to speak to the student organization about the benefits of belonging to a professional organization as students, emphasizing the leadership and networking skills that could be developed. She also pointed out the benefits of being able to list membership in a professional organization on one’s resume when looking for a job. The students were also encouraged to continue their professional career by becoming certified and active in their organization after graduation.
To date we have had 151 students apply for student membership. The members have come from four disciplines taught at the Mesa Pima campus: Phlebotomy Technician, Medical Administrative Assistant, Medical Assistant, and Dental Assistant. The students meet as a group every other month and decide on a service project to be hosted by our Chapter. They have elected officers and class representatives who meet separately to organize the service in detail and are responsible for publicizing the event.
We have had three service projects so far this year. The first was a contest in collecting pull-tabs off aluminum cans as a fundraiser for the Lions Club Camp Tatiyee. This camp provides a camping experience for children and young adults who are physically or mentally challenged, deaf or blind. The winning classes who collected the most pull tabs were treated to a popsicle party. The second project was a bake sale to benefit a young girl in Gilbert who needed a liver transplant. Close to $1000 was raised in two days and deposited in a bank account set up for her health care needs. The third project benefited Sunshine Acres, a home for children age 5 and up, caring for the educational, emotional, physical, social and spiritual needs of the children. Through a bake sale and raffle over $1000 was raised to provide hygiene kits for each home and movie passes for over 60 children. The Medical Assistant and Dental Assistant classes took a field trip to tour the facility and provide a mini dental/health fair.
In our next meeting in November, we plan to sponsor a canned food drive to help stock our Pima Pantry, which provides food and non-perishable goods for our Pima students who are in need of those items.
In our student chapter of AMT, our students are learning the responsibilities of becoming a professional and giving back to the community in which they live.
