MSU OsteoCHAMPS program introduces high schoolers to osteopathic medicine, scholarships

During the two intensive weeks in MSU's OsteoCHAMPS program, high school juniors and seniors might discover an inner desire to be a doctor or decide to take a different career path. Participation can give students in need a leg up in qualifying for scholarships from the local osteopathic association. 

According to excerpts from the story:

For David Hotwagner, who is in his third year of studies at Michigan State University's College of Osteopathic Medicine, the dream of being a physician started early. When he was in second grade, Hotwagner "tangled" with a lawn mower in an accident that left him seriously injured and hospitalized for 2-½ months.  "It was pretty traumatic. I had extensive injuries. The doctors said I might not ever walk again," he says. As Hotwagner slowly began to recuperate, he was intrigued with medicine and named it his career goal even in elementary school. A graduate of Whitehall High School, Hotwagner, now 23, was always a good student, but medical school was a financial impossibility for his family. "I didn't know how I was going to do it," he says. But as a junior in high school, Hotwagner was introduced to OsteoCHAMPS, a unique program offered through Michigan State University's College of Osteopathic Medicine and supported locally by the Osteopathic Foundation of West Michigan. The program sends qualifying Muskegon County high school juniors and seniors to MSU for two intensive weeks of science studies and an introduction to osteopathic medicine.

Read the complete story here.

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