Saturday Academies
These occur on designated Saturdays throughout the fall and spring semester for high school students. During these academies the SABHCOP brings together health professionals, financial aid presenters, health skit scenarios, and an array of other resources that high school students can benefit from to make them better candidates for college.

Med-Start Summer Program
The summer Med-Start program offers high school juniors who have a strong interest in a health care profession an introduction to chemistry, health sciences, cultures, and college. Eligible students must be permanent Arizona residents or U.S. citizens, represent a minority population (African-American, Hispanic, or Native American), live in a rural area, be a first generation college student, and/or qualify as economically disadvantaged.

College tours
Students’ participate in field trips throughout the year to visit the Arizona Health Sciences College of Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy. Students also get to travel to other Health Sciences Centers in Arizona with the intention that one day they may pursue their health career in one of these centers.

Bi-weekly club meetings
SABHCOP, with the help of a high school team of facilitators, aids in developing a SABHCOP club in which students follow a structured curriculum that covers everything from health care professions to specific topics in health. Participants also unite to support events such as cancer day, smoke free day, and many others throughout the year. These clubs form teams and compete yearly in an annual poster competition at the regional and county levels.

Cultural and leadership summer retreat
The goal of the retreat is to enhance cultural as well as leadership skills among SABHCOP students throughout the four designated counties (Pima, Santa Cruz, Yuma, and Cochise). The retreat is one week long and takes place at one of Tucson’s hotels. The students get to spend the night there, and activities run from 8am to about 7pm. Students in turn will become stronger applicants if they decide to apply for college. During the retreat, students get to network with other students that are interested in a health profession. In addition to networking opportunities, they get to participate in skits, role-plays, and other activities.

Volunteer opportunities
Another benefit of being a participant with the SABHCOP is that students seeking to shadow a health professional can call the main office (626-7946 ext 207) and ask for Miguel Vasquez. The SABHCOP staff then works hard to pair students with their desired health care professional. These experiences may take place throughout Tucson’s local hospitals and clinics.