Step UP Symposium
Our annual Step UP Symposium saw its audience close to double in its second year, turning out 70-plus dedicated undergraduate Operation Smile volunteers from the United States, Canada and Italy. Speakers from different career paths helped to show the students that it doesn't matter what you're studying, Operation Smile depends on the time and talents of every major.
Our Newest Student-Led Initiatives
Whenever Operation Smile sees a need, it seeks to do something about it — and that's exactly why Student Programs kicked off its two newest projects.
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Cook Stove Project
An indoor, open-flame cook stove is a recipe for both fire and health hazards. In an effort to boost a community's overall health, a select team of undergrads will replace inefficient cook stoves in Chiapas, Mexico, this May as part of our first-ever cook stove project. The student team took time this month to prepare for the experience.
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Dignity Project
When we heard that many women at our sites around the world can't afford sanitary pads, we rallied teams of undergrads to facilitate women's health workshops.
During certain medical missions where the need appears to be great, the students will help women better understand their periods and distribute kits with reusable pads.
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Mission Training Workshops
On two continents over the same weekend, two cohorts of student volunteers were trained to serve as health care educators during Operation Smile medical missions.
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U-Voice Training
A corps of 16 storytellers learned the fundamentals of journalism this month to prepare for their roles as reporters during an international medical mission.
Artsy for the Anniversary
Congratulations to Caroline Fox of Langley High School in Virginia! Her T-shirt design was selected as the official mission tee marking Operation Smile Egypt's 15th anniversary.
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STUDENT PROGRAMS PLANS AND PROJECTS
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Spread the Love
Our students make a difference around the world, and next month they'll bring that same spirit of service and share it at home across Hampton Roads. They'll spend time volunteering for local groups all while spreading the word about Operation Smile.
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Embrace the Arts
As part of the Spread the Love campaign, Operation Smile invites students to share their talents with the community and sign up for its regional 757's Got Talent show on March 27 as well as its Art with Heart exhibit.
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Speaking of Spread the Love
Two Virginia Beach high schools are ahead of the campaign curve. Representing at the annual Winter Carnival, Operation Smile volunteers at Ocean Lakes High manned a table touting opportunities to get involved. The club at Princess Anne High made posters that not only promoted Spread the Love but also promoted kindness.
Final Mile
We're challenging thousands of elementary schoolers to be Smile Heroes in the run-up to the Operation Smile Final Mile race this March at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. Learn how you can help kids help other kids. Click here for more.
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CALL TO ACTION
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Operation Smile Wants to Celebrate You and Your Club...
Please be sure to send your club roster to your regional associate so we can give you a shout-out when we tally up our efforts.
… and Operation Smile’s Nurses, too!
Know a former student volunteer who's now serving Operation Smile as a nurse? Let’s give them some love! Operation Smile is looking to celebrate our wonderful nurses, and we’re looking to you to recommend volunteers to highlight.
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ADVOCATES IN ACTION
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New Jersey Smile Week
Thirteen Operation Smile clubs from across the state took part in Smile Week, five days chock full of fundraisers and awareness events at their schools and in their communities. Major kudos to the New Jersey Regional Leadership Council for organizing the campaign, which went from from Jan. 13-17.
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Delbarton School: Tied on the last day of Penny Wars, juniors and seniors chucked change and duked it out for a dress-down day -- but the real winner was Operation Smile. The fundraiser netted more than $400 in donations.
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Lawrence High School: This club was strategic: Among their Smile Week activities, members collected supplies for smile bags that they're going to put together at their upcoming ULead.
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Mount Saint Mary To help their classmates better understand the impact of the surgical care Operation Smile provides, the club held a game of surgery trivia.
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New York: Longtime volunteer Timmy Zhu has crossed an important milestone in his Operation Smile “a-wear-ness” campaign: He has worn an Operation Smile T-shirt every day for more than 500 days! Follow @timmyzhu100 on Instagram for your daily dose of Operation Smile style.
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Florida: Capping off her yearlong effort, Suncoast High School student Maya Mills mailed her handmade patient gowns to Operation Smile Global Headquarters last month. She made 25 beautiful gowns in all, she tells us, because she wanted the patients to smile wearing colorful and happily-printed gowns.
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Texas: Let's offer up a loving welcome to the club members at Vandegrift High School, who held their first meeting this month.
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Canada: Western University in Ontario is preparing to host the first-ever Canadian U-Lead on March 7. The full-day event is called the Global Medical Leadership Symposium, and its theme will be innovation. Attendees will hear from keynote speaker Morgan Livingston, a volunteer child life specialist with Operation Smile, who will discuss her work and the research she conducts on medical missions.
St. Mary's College, a high school in Sault St. Mary, Ontario, hosted its annual SMILE week in support of Operation Smile Canada. The campaign was spearheaded entirely by the grade 12 French immersion religion class.
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Brazil: High school student volunteers rounded up almost 50 kilograms of baby formula, which were donated to families attending the Porto Velho medical mission.
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Egypt: The student club joined Operation Smile Egypt's dialogue team for its communication workshop, where they honed their skills in building relationships with patients and their families.
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Germany: Sophie and Elizabeth of Frankfurt International School raised more than 300 euros from raffling off Christmas knitivities.
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Rwanda: Starting the new year strong, our club of medical students held a burn care workshop and worked with the community.
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South Africa: The team at Stellenbosch University welcomed new members at the societies' fair.
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UAE: We're sending our love and thanks to the clubs of UAE! In December, they announced that, together, they raised enough money to heal 51 smiles in just one term.
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STUDENT PROGRAMS IN THE NEWS
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Making a Difference
We are grateful for all you do! Have a link you'd like to share? Send it our way!
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STUDENTS ON DECK TO SERVE
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Life-Changing Trips
We're sending international student volunteers to the following medical missions:*
- Guadalajara, Mexico: Feb. 13-22
- Durgapur, India: Feb. 23 to March 1
- Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: March 23-30
- Antsirabe, Madagascar: March 6-13
- Oujda, Morocco: March 6-13
- Managua, Nicaragua: March 14-21
- Asuncion, Paraguay: March 15-20
- Siliguri, India: March 15-23
- Santa Cruz, Bolivia: March 21-27
- Cebu, Philippines: March 21-27
*Schedule is subject to change. Please check operationsmile.org for details.
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