The new school year brings changes to the Pennsylvania Youth Apprenticeship Program (PYAP), a partnership of Penn State Hershey Medical Center and Penn State College of Medicine, Lower Dauphin School District and Derry Township School District. The PYAP program gives high school seniors the opportunity to interact with health care professionals in a real-work environment and to explore various health care professions. The students shadow at Penn State Hershey every day for an hour-and-a-half.

This year’s PYAP program consists of 18 seniors continuing in their second year. Next year, the program will be moved to the mornings and be renamed the Healthcare Career Exploration Program.

The coordinators for the program are: Renee McMinn, Lower Dauphin High School; Bonnie Ritchey, Hershey High School; and Catherine Caruso, Penn State Hershey.