Krissie Gibbs Sets an Example for Area Kids

When Oral Health Educator Krissie Gibbs was younger she participated in Upward Bound, a college preparatory program for middle and high school age children. Last Fall Gibbs ran in to the Kunthary Thai-Johnson, the Director of her old Upward Bound program who is now Director of a similar program, the Health Careers Opportunities Program (HCOP).  HCOP is an eight-week educational program for middle and high school children that aims to create a “pipeline” to funnel Boston area students into higher education programs geared toward health and medical professions. HCOP employs instructors who are currently in graduate school for a health profession or who work in a health field to teach these students what these careers paths have to offer.

“Kunthary saw me at an event that CHP participated in last fall and invited me to present to her students at the summer program. When I visited the program I spoke to the students about my experience in undergrad and what ultimately led me to the health field and the many areas that health has to offer.”

Gibbs also arranged a fun game of “Dental Jeopardy” for the students. The game highlighed six areas related to oral health: smoking, oral disease, oral piercing, nutrition, brushing, and all about teeth in general. The group was split into two teams who competed against each other for oral health prizes

The presentation was a big hit with the students and Gibbs has already been invited back for next year.