Duquesne University’s chapter hosted their Strong Women Strong Girls field trip Saturday, February 19th. Though I was part of the field trip committee, I could not have prepared myself for the success and impact of the event. The day began early, at 9:00 A.M., as the field trip committee showed up to decorate the Union and other locations the girls would be visiting. Pink and black signs and balloons graced several locations of our campus, indicating safe locations for the girls to run to if they needed help or assistance.
The theme of the day was a field trip through the medical fields. There was two break out sessions: nursing and occupational therapy (OT). Students and professors led the sessions, which included more of the Duquesne community than ever before. I found this a very unique and successful approach. The girls were split up by sites and attended all stations of each session. In the OT program, the girls got to learn how OT can be used to energize people or calm them down – through an exciting demonstration on the mats! The second part of the OT program was a lesson on how to put on clothing with one arm and the like. The nursing session was equally as educational, as the girls learned about taking blood pressure and listening to heartbeats. They also learned a little bit about what it is like to be a nursing student, working with dummies and the like. The second portion of the nursing session included making cards for sick kids in the children’s hospital.
Still though, as usual, the favored part of the day was eating at Towers, our dining hall. As I sat around the table with the girls I mentor and heard them talk excitedly about their plans to attend Duquesne, I knew the day was a success. Not only did they have an educational field trip, but they also got to have fun and bond with each other and their mentors. It was a great day all around, for mentors and girls as the event went smoothly, and wonderfully.