North Memorial Health and West Broadway Rising open doors for Northside youth exploring healthcare careers

On May 1, a group of high school juniors and seniors from Exploration High School traded their classrooms for the corridors of North Memorial Health in Robbinsdale, getting a behind-the-scenes look at one of the region’s largest hospitals and, for some, a first real glimpse at what a career in healthcare could look like.

The visit was organized through a new partnership between North Memorial Health and West Broadway Rising, a program of the West Broadway Business and Area Coalition that connects Northside youth with local businesses and career opportunities. For students from Exploration High School, an alternative project-based school in North Minneapolis, the experience was designed to do something simple but powerful, let young people see themselves in spaces they might never have otherwise entered.

“I think it’s really important to bring young people to places like this in order for them to see the environment and be able to envision themselves in this workplace,” said Deeq Abdi, program manager at West Broadway Rising, who designed the curriculum and built the partnerships behind the program. “They never would have had this back door access, the ability to talk to people in careers they might be interested in.”

The partnership grew out of a broader vision at West Broadway Rising to bridge the gap between the Northside’s young people and the businesses already rooted in their community.

“Our director Krystel Porter had the wonderful idea, why don’t we partner our business members with young people?” Abdi said. “There are a lot of young people in North Minneapolis who really need work, but they have to go outside of their community to find it. We have a lot of wonderful Black and brown people who own businesses and want to teach these young people: ‘Hey, this is how I got here, and you can do it as well.'”

For North Memorial Health, the partnership reflects a commitment that runs deeper than a single field trip. The week before the hospital visit, North Memorial staff visited Exploration High School for a career day, introducing students to the organization’s values and the wide range of roles that make a hospital function.

“Today is really about exploring, learning about what is possible and maybe what might be a good fit for them as they look at their careers in the future,” said Jamie [Insert] North Memorial’s manager of learning and development in human resources. “There are so many different careers in healthcare that people don’t necessarily know about.”

Those values, she said, shape everything the organization does. “We advocate courageously, we do what’s right for our patients and for our team members. We rally together, we create impact and we respect uniqueness.”

For the students, the experience opened eyes. One student said he came in knowing little about what happens behind the scenes at a hospital.

“I thought it was like doctors, nurses and X-rays, that’s it,” he said. “But it’s a lot. They have MRIs, X-rays, all kinds of stuff. I didn’t really know the behind the scenes.”

When asked whether the visit had sparked any interest in healthcare as a career path, he didn’t hesitate.

“Yeah, it definitely did.”

Another student said what stood out most wasn’t the equipment or the facilities, it was the people.

“I enjoyed the teamwork and the sportsmanship that they had together, because I really enjoy watching people work together and getting along,” he said. When asked whether healthcare was on his radar as a career, he was candid. “Probably not the patient stuff, I like communicating, so probably the front desk.”

That kind of honest self-discovery is exactly what the program is designed to spark, Abdi said. Getting to know each student individually… their stories, their struggles and their dreams, has been the most meaningful part of the work.

“A lot of these young people are like adults. They have to deal with adult situations,” he said. “It’s nice to be able to mentor them and say, ‘You know what? I’ve been through this as well, and we’re going to be okay.'”

For Exploration High School students, whose education centers on community-based projects and hands-on learning, the visit to North Memorial felt like a natural extension of what they already value.

“It’s project based. I like working with the community and just making projects for the community,” one student said of his school experience.

The May 1 visit is one of the first of its kind for the West Broadway Rising program, which is still in its early stages of building out its youth engagement work. But for everyone involved, the potential is clear, and personal.

“This has been an absolute honor,” Abdi said. “Every one of these kids is such a brilliant, kind, wonderful young person. I wish I was like them in high school.”

Jasmine McBride welcomes reader responses at jmcbride@spokesman-recorder.com.