Twenty-five Krebs eighth grade GEAR UP students and two Krebs Public School staff members recently toured Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton. Recruiter Karen Darby met students at the E. E. Tourtellotte Student Center when they arrived on campus and began the tour.
Gunning Hall provided students a fun and educational introduction to careers in the medical field. The nursing program offered at EOSC has been ranked number one in the state. Students viewed equipment used in the program including hospital beds, medical mannequins, models, skeletons, and others. Students learned the program is an in-depth program with many nursing students choosing not to live in student housing so they can focus on studying and live with individuals with similar schedules.
Students can study respiratory therapy with additional courses offered at the McAlester campus. After earning an Associate’s Degree in Respiratory Therapy, an individual could anticipate an estimated annual salary of $55,000. Both programs teach students hands-on, critical thinking skills. The nursing program provides head-to-toe knowledge, while respiratory therapy concentrates on the lungs.
The tour continued to the Bill H. Hill Library. In the Library Media Center, students learned the library on EOSC campus runs differently than the library at Krebs as 95% of the books at EOSC are nonfiction. Students further learned a typical magazine is written on a fifth to sixth grade reading level, but materials on a college campus are typically academic journals. These journals contain information which can be useful when citing sources in research papers and other documents.
Microbiology and Biology Professor David Juarez met with students in Sullivan Hall to discuss careers in the field of science. Juarez wished to entice students into the field of science stating students in the science fields are being prepared to solve problems for jobs which had not yet been invented. Working in fields such as microbiology, an individual can help to cure disease, or learn about bacteria and the difference between good and bad bacteria. In studying science, a person can also work in the field of GMO (genetically modified organisms) offering an example of diabetics who needed insulin, can now use synthetically engineered insulin made from genetically modified bacteria. Juarez informed students of “Citrus Greening” a serious disease which affects citrus fruits and can cause decreased production and has wiped out fruits in other countries. GMO could be used to save the fruit, as noted by student Joseph Shadd who asked, “You mean, one of us might save fruit?”
Students were provided lunch by Great Western Dining while at Eastern Oklahoma State College. Students enjoyed the “all you can eat” lunch, saying they were excited to be returning to the campus for summer camp in June.
The field trip was sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College GEAR UP. Participating schools take two field trips each academic year—one to tour a college or university and one that is cultural/educational in nature. In 2017, EOSC received a $17 million federal GEAR UP grant and serves over 3,000 students in 39 area schools.
