MIDDLEBURY, Vt. (WCAX) – College students are coming to the rescue in Addison County through a program that helps Middlebury students build their future while helping to ensure emergency medical care for the community.
Middlebury College students Jack Johnson and Lincoln Pierce work at Middlebury Regional Emergency Medical Services, or MREMS.
“You’re working with the cleared EMTs here. And then after the training process is through, you take a little test to make sure you’re competent and everything, and then you become a full-time clear employee,” Pierce said.
Students can start as interns, working full time over the summer, then, during the school year, come back part time.
The MiddWorks program pairs local companies with the school for summer workers. MREMS is one of the program’s 27 partner organizations.
“Two interns get supported with wages and available housing at the college to get to gain experiences at MREMS over the summer in full-time internships over eight weeks,” said Kailee Brickner-McDonald of Middlebury College.
Students can come into MREMS with an existing EMT certification or learn on the job. Program leaders say it benefits the students, the workforce and Vermont patients.
“The students bring an energy and an eagerness to learn, which is great. And then giving them that field experience, a lot of them go and follow the med track, they become physicians, they become PAs,” said Kate Rothwell of MREMS.
Students like Pierce can then go on to pursue higher education.
“I am thinking about applying to medical school, and this has given me some great experience for that,” he said.
Others stay in Vermont.
“A lot of our students in those programs find employment in those programs or in the area because they start to love the people, they start to feel connected to the place, they feel like they’re a part of Vermont off campus in a way that’s really meaningful,” said Brickner-McDonald.
