TIPS for Organizing Students at Your School

1. Begin organizing early.
   
   
2. Find fellow students to help you organize. THE MORE THE BETTER!!!!
   
   
3. Try to get faculty involvement. This increases the likelihood that student involvement will continue in future years, and is a great way to form relationships between students and faculty members.
   
   
4. Key selling point to gain student interest: Getting involved with the Special Olympics offers a great opportunity to learn about the health needs of individuals with developmental disabilities, while also gaining confidence and satisfaction in volunteering with these special athletes. The following is a quote from a former volunteer

   “Volunteering at the Special Olympics was one of the most rewarding opportunities I have yet experienced at medical school. Not only did I begin to learn about the specific needs of individuals with developmental disabilities, but also what truly amazing individuals make up this community.” Courtney Bellomo, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, MS2

5. If you want to participate in a specific Healthy Athletes program (i.e.: Healthy Hearing), contact local program directors directly (contact information found on relevant websites). For general inquires, contact your local Special Olympics organizers and ask for their assistance in helping coordinate your involvement. They are the best source of local contact information.
   
   
6. If a Healthy Athletes program is not organized in your area, don’t discount the experience of volunteering as a “non-medical” volunteer (spending a day with an athlete, cheering for him/her, escorting them to activities, meals, and other activities). It offers a unique opportunity to form strong personal relationships with an athlete that is hard to establish when volunteering in a medical capacity.
   
   
7. Choose volunteer opportunities that would likely draw the most student interest. (Summer Games, Winter Games, MEDfest events, and any programming that does not conflict with examinations)
   
   
8. Try to get as many people involved as possible. Advertise to medical students (1st-4th year) along with other students affiliated with your school (Psych, Dental, PA, PT, OT, SW etc).
   
   
9. HAVE FUN!!!
   
   
10. RELAX, and realize that this is an opportunity to reach out to a wonderful population of individuals who you rarely come in contact with throughout medical school, but who you will likely care for as a future physician.