Alumni Spotlight - Surbhi Bansil

by Dr. Dieuwertje "DJ" Kast

Tell us, what was YOUR first JEP or YSP assignment?

I started with the Young Scientists Program in the fall of my senior year, and I taught 1st grade STEM curriculum at Norwood Elementary In the spring of my senior year, I taught 5th grade STEM curriculum at Norwood.

How did your time with JEP/YSP help prepare you for life after college?

I’m currently a third year student, just starting my clinical rotations to explore the various medical specialties

When I was working on JEP’s 2019 annual report, I was anticipating a new decade full of potential and expanding possibilities A few weeks later, when we left the JEP House on USC’s campus for the last time in 2020, I couldn’t imagine that we would be working from home for the rest of the year Nor could I have anticipated what that would mean for our programs, which are so fundamentally defined by their in-person, community-based experiences. Now, a year later, I am writing from a very different place both literally and figuratively: one bound by physical restrictions and uncertainty about the future, yet with cautious optimism and a profound sense of gratitude for the students, faculty, staff and community partners with whom I work every day

YSP positively impacted my life in so many ways Growing up, I struggled with public speaking and leadership skills With YSP--with the new responsibility of needing to manage a classroom full of young students that are looking up to you--I felt myself grow in confidence and leadership as I pushed myself to provide them with the best learning experience possible I also found myself realizing how much I enjoy academics After teaching for YSP, I decided to continue building my passion and experiences with education during my gap year between undergrad and medical school by writing curriculum for JEP’s Cancer Education Initiative and teaching 7th grade Life Science and 10th grade Biology for the USC Leslie and William McMorrow Neighborhood Academic Initiative.

Through my experiences working with the Cancer Education Initiative and YSP, I realized how much I love the field of oncology and working with kids Because of this, one of my top considerations for specialty is Pediatric Hematology & Oncology

What is one thing you would like to share with current JEP/YSP participants?

For example, within two weeks of canceling our service-learning, work-study and volunteer assignments for the Spring 2020 semester, we were launching a pilot program in collaboration with Viterbi’s K-12 STEM Center and Keck’s Care for the Caregiver Program Between April and May, JEP student-workers provided 350 hours of tutoring to children attending JEP partner schools and the children of Keck’s COVID frontline caregivers. Parents in the program asked that we extend the service through the summer and by August, tutors from JEP’s ReadersPLUS and Young Scientists Program had offered nearly 2000 sessions at no cost to families Our summer internship programs had intended to place USC students on site at homeless-serving organizations, health care centers and legal clinics, but the ongoing pandemic required another adjustment to our plans

When applying for graduate school and other higher education programs, I found my experiences working with JEP/YSP really stand out in my applications and interviews

Only a handful of our partner organizations were able to host interns online (including California Hospital Medical Center, Bet Tzedek Legal Services and the Sola Community Peace Center) so the majority of the students participated in a virtual research program led by JEP’s graduate student internship director, Claire Cassianni. Our summer programs provided inspiration for our 2020-21 dent-directors, Soroush Ershadifar and Grace Himberger, who e service opportunities for the THV students unable to work on

All of these experiences helped foster my my passion for education and mentorship, and I’ve decided that I would like to work in Academic Medicine in my future career as a physician

Please tell us a little about your experience in medical school

I’ve dreamt of becoming a physician since I was a kid, and I feel so honored to have been offered a spot in the class of 2023 at the University of Hawai’i John A Burns School of Medicine to participate in JEP programs in the fall, either as volunteers er than a typical semester, I was nevertheless amazed by the ing to dedicate their time and energy to service, despite the gement and, in many cases, remote time zones Hundreds of th tutors via Zoom Scores more worked in teams to record to use to supplement classroom instruction Students taught e in their homes using kits over 2400 of them that we to families via our school partners

Some of my interviewers pointed out how amazing programs like YSP are and how YSP teaching assistants are helping to grow a foundation of interest in STEM in these kids that would not have otherwise had the exposure to it So be sure to give it your all when you’re in the classroom with these kids because you’re their role models and you’re really making a difference in their lives!