CASTLETON, Vt. (WCAX) – As state leaders juggle a shortage of healthcare professionals, one program is working to get more young Vermonters into the medical field.

A medical program through the Governor’s Institute of Vermont has gotten so popular that it just doubled its capacity to keep up with applicants.

“It definitely makes me think about the real thing. And that if I choose to do a different medical path, I will have to use these skills,” said Jarren Hewes of Burr and Burton Academy.

Hewes is one of 70 high schoolers attending the Health and Medicine Institute at Vermont State University Castleton this summer.

It’s run by the Governor’s Institute of Vermont – a nonprofit offering accelerated learning programs on college campuses for Vermont teens.

Professionals from the Southern Vermont Area Health Education Center guide students through lessons on everything from surgery to emergency services to healthcare tech.

Students can leave the week with their CPR, Stop the Bleed, and Vt. Emergency First Responder certificates.

“I think it’s good to get a jumpstart on a career that I want to be a part of. I’m going to Burlington Tech next year to get my LNA so it’s definitely something to add on top of that,” said Ainsley Charbonneau of Milton High School.

The program is a hot commodity, with application numbers growing every year. For the first time this summer, the institute offered a second week of programming to meet demand.

Matthew Binginot with the Governor’s Institute of Vermont says it’s the opportunity to get hands-on learning outside of the classroom that’s made the institute so popular.

“Actually getting the experience making the connections, learning the skills and a really visceral way, and also just having fun and meeting each other because they all share that interests,” said Binginot.

State and private donors helped fund the institute’s expansion. It’s a worthwhile investment in a state suffering from a shortage of medical professionals and migrating youth.

Binginot and students say a week at the institute makes Vermont’s medical field more attractive.

“What’s cool is most students find that is for them once they get here,” he said.

“It’s very positive. Everyone’s very welcoming. Communication between each other is good. We all kind of are able to bond knowing that we’d like the same thing,” said Hewes.

“It’s something that changed my respect for what they do and how hard things actually are because it’s not as easy as it looks,” said Charbonneau.

If health and medicine aren’t your forte, the Governor’s Institute of Vermont also offers programming for a range of subjects from environmental science and tech to global issues and youth action.

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