Young women who attend a College Point high school now have advanced medical equipment at their fingertips.
St. Agnes Academic High School, located at 124th Street and 13th Avenue, unveiled the Maureen Martin Fritch Health Science Lab on Sept. 27. The space will enhance the school’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) curriculum and give students an edge when applying for medical programs.
Over recent years, the high school has developed partnerships with local higher education institutions, including Rockville Centre’s Molloy College, to offer students hands-on experiences and college-level academic courses. Internships and leadership training is also offered to students by NewYork-Presbyterian/Queens hospital.
The overwhelming popularity of these programs made it clear to St. Agnes’ principal Susan Nicoletti that resources students enjoyed at other institutions needed to be brought right to the school.
“There was such high interest in it that I could really see the need for it here,” Nicoletti said. “We found that there are a number of students at our school interested in the health fields.”
Students can find a number of resources in the lab, including CPR training kits, defibrillators, baby scales and cribs, beds, stretchers, blood pressure machines, oxygen levels, stethoscopes and other emergency room equipment.
“[The lab] has been a dream of mine for a few years,” Nicoletti said.
The new addition to the school was made possible by Maureen Martin-Fritch, an alumna who started her career as a nurse and always had a love for healthcare. Fritch shared Nicoletti’s dream, and the plan was set into motion.
Cohen Children’s Medical Center and Northwell Health also supplied donations for the lab.
Educators in the school’s STEM program have developed ways to integrate lab work into students’ learning experiences. Nicoletti and administrators are also in the process of working with New York State to build new programs into students’ schedules, providing them with college credits and certifications.
For more information about St Agnes Academic High School’s STEM Program or the upcoming Open House on Oct. 14, call 718-353-6276.
