Healers of Tomorrow (HOT) - Native Health Initiative

Healers of Tomorrow

What is the HOT program?

Healers of Tomorrow (HOT) is an 9-month mentorship program (September-May) for high school students (9th – 12th grade) who are interested in pursuing a healthcare career. The overarching goal of HOT is to support students in developing clear educational and career goals while building the skills necessary to achieve them.

Our program has three main components:

1. Students will be paired with a mentor who is a health professional or someone who is pursuing a health-related degree for the duration of the program based on the student’s career goal (i.e., a student interested in being a doctor will be paired with a medical student).

2. We hold monthly meetings at UNM’s Domenici Center on the first Saturday of the month, where we bring in guest speakers from different healthcare fields for students to learn from and connect with. Mentors and mentees spend dedicated time together at these meetings as well.

3. Students will also create a community health project of their choice with the support of mentors, HOT leadership, and Native Health Initiative. Students receive a mini-grant for their projects from NHI. This is a great resume builder and shows colleges/health programs that students are leaders in their communities.

What do mentees get out of the HOT program?

1. Mentees learn about the wide variety of healthcare jobs that are available to them through guest speakers. Mentees are always encouraged to connect with guest speakers and are usually able to shadow and learn from them after meetings.

2. Certifications in BLS/CPR, First-Aid, and a suturing workshop are provided to mentees.

3. A mini-grant is provided for mentee community projects, allowing mentees to conduct a larger scope project and increase their impact.

4. Upon completion of the program, students will receive a certificate and $400 stipend to thank them for their time, effort, and investment in their futures.

View 2024 HOT Report

Mentee Application

Mentor Application

Check out HOT on KRQE News 13

Healers of Tomorrow Participant Spotlight

Emelia Pino

Healers of Tomorrow Participant

Emelia Pino (2019-2020 HOT participant) saw a need within her home community of Zia Pueblo. With her home community on lock down from the pandemic, she wanted to gather educational supplies and games to keep the youth entertained.

Read this UNM article about Emelia!

Emelia became a HOT Coordinator and has been selected for a prestigious national award given out by the National Indian Health Board. She was recognized at the 2020 Heroes in Health Award Gala!

Community-Based Projects

"Dental Bags"-Mia Armijo-Paquin

My project was to help the kids in my community who are younger and have not been very educated on oral health since covid started. Many of the tribal youth programs have shut down so I contacted the NAPRR dentist office and got some supplies for the bags. I gave these to kids 5 to 10 and distributed all 60 bags. I hope the bags help kids understand how important it is to take care of their teeth.

"Zia Tutoring"-Ankit Jaiswal

Zia Tutoring aims to make college more accessible by providing free standardized testing preparation including SAT/ACT prep and AP class preparation

“Normalizing Periods in the Dance Space”-Helena Tran

I donated period products (~300 pads) evenly between the two locations of my dance studio. These products are for all the dancers, and I think this will make it easier for young girls feel less weird about their menstruation. I also made kind notes to be hung up in the bathrooms, just to spread some positivity because sometimes the dance space can have a lot of pressure and toxicity. Finally, I made a little period guidebook, explaining and normalizing different aspects of a period (dealing with PMS/pains, fun facts…). I wrote with an engaging and kind style in hopes of influencing kids to be nicer to their selves and their peers during their phase of development.

"Mental Health Matters" -Kahleya Chapman & Hallie Cornfield

The goal of our project was to give resources to the community of who to reach out to when they're in times of need. We used interactive methods like writing in journals, sticky notes, and crating a fun glitter breathing activity. We also had a guess speaker, Karen Waconda, speak about the traditional aspects of mental health. We closed with a reflection and a meal.