A Third Summer for UW–Madison LEAP (Learn, Experience, Advance, Participate) Forward Internship

The UW–Madison LEAP (Learn, Experience, Advance, Participate) Forward Internship wrapped up it’s third successful summer of the program. LEAP was piloted in the summer of 2018 as a part of UW–Madison’s Anchor Partner Commitment to the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) and the Personalized Pathways Program. LEAP Forward has been designed as an equitable opportunity for MMSD rising 11^th and 12^th grade Pathways students and enables students to explore passions in health sciences through practical and professional experiences on UW–Madison’s campus. The program prioritizes admittance to students who are underrepresented, would be first generation college students, and/or students who are receiving free/reduced lunch. To ensure equitable access to this opportunity, LEAP Forward provides students with a lump sum wage as well as 1-college credit over the course of 6 weeks during the summer. This effort has been developed in collaboration with cross-campus entities and administered by the Office of Student Financial Aid with credit offered through the School of Education’s Department of Counseling Psychology. This year’s cohort was comprised of 15 students from East, LaFollete, and Memorial high schools. The students interned 12 hours/week at 6 UW–Madison host sites which included: Discovery Outreach, Veterinary Medicine, Physical Therapy, McBurney Disability Resource Center, University Housing-Capital Projects, and Bement Lab-Cell Imaging. The students also had the opportunity to engage with 11 additional UW–Madison departments throughout their 6 week UW course. One LEAP intern commented, “I would say that this program has been such a good opportunity. It has not only given great benefits like a college credit and high school credit but it gives you a foot into the door of a possible career. I have learned so much on my site, and have taken so much interest in different career paths that I didn’t know about through different presentations with our weekly guest speakers. Giving me hope about what I may want to do.”