A Day at Burton with the Class of 2027
With a busy semester and a timely spring break, first-year students came back to campus energized and ready to crush the annual Duke PA program visit to Burton Elementary School. For more than 20 years, DPAP has visited Burton Elementary, bringing health presentations, educational stations, and an afternoon full of learning. Faculty member Dr. Brittany Macon-Davis, DMSc, PA-C, remarked, “I am still in shock, and I know Drs. (Megan) Holmes, Ph.D, and (Laura) Okolie, DMSc, MBA, MHS, PA-C, are too! This was truly student-led! You all came back from spring break and truly rocked it!”
First-year students started off with an engaging Lorax-themed skit that went over the importance of the health fair. Madeleine Archer, PA-S1, dressed up as the Lorax bringing the presentation to life. One PA student adds, “The kids spent the rest of the event trying to figure out who was in the Lorax costume, and many of them figured out it was Maddie!”
After the skit, Burton Elementary students rotated through different stations that focused on anatomy, mindfulness, anti-bullying, nutrition, physical activity, sleep hygiene, and creativity/crafting. This gave them a fun, hands-on way to learn about each topic. They even handed out notebooks with personalized messages to all of the elementary schoolers to top things off.
Leah Warnke, PA-S1 shares another highlight from the visit being the ‘mystery muffins’ game. During this activity, students were given chocolate muffins where they had to guess the secret vegetable ingredient (zucchini) that they contained. Warnke remarks, “We saw that the students had so much fun and weren’t even upset that they ‘missed recess for this’!”
As the afternoon came to an end, everyone gathered as a group, where students shared their favorite stations and what they learned, many highlighting the importance of mindfulness and treating everyone with kindness. Andrea Fronjas, PA-S1, recaps, “The kids loved it, the volunteers loved it, I loved it! It was an absolute blast!”
As always, the Class of 2027 carried the torch, creating another successful Burton visit while introducing knowledge of the PA profession and promoting health awareness in their community.
Thanks to first-year student Dallin Oyler for capturing these wonderful photos!